Salvador Illa promises to build more than 200,000 new homes, most of them starting in 2028.

BarcelonaAs he did a year ago, Salvador Illa once again focused his general policy debate on housing. The president of the Generalitat (Catalan government) announced his intention to promote up to 214,000 homes throughout Catalonia by mobilizing land that until now had been pending construction or for which no planning had yet been carried out. Of these more than 200,000 homes, between 40% and 50% must be designated as social housing, while the rest will be unsubsidized, according to government sources. This is the main difference with the package Isla announced a year ago, when he promised build 50,000 apartments which should be 100% affordable rentals, and which he himself had agreed upon with ERC and Comuns upon his investiture. Despite focusing on housing, Illa also used his speech to reach out to his members regarding the budget the government claims to be preparing. In this regard, he once again pledged to comply with the investiture agreements, especially with the new financing. "We will make our specific proposal once we have completed the work," Illa stated.

This week's debate will serve to take the pulse of the legislature, to assess the pressure from the members on Isla, who, for now, have sought to give them a nod on housing matters. When could these apartments be ready and how will they be distributed? The president has not set a timetable for their completion, but has divided them into three groups. To start with, 21,728 homes spread across 25 areas with approved planning and construction work awaiting construction. There is another group of 32,396 homes spread across 57 areas with approved planning but not yet ready for construction. In both cases, the Government estimates that these approximately 54,000 homes could begin the production phase between 2026 and 2027. The third group consists of 118,562 homes spread across 52 areas that do not yet have approved planning, and from there the government estimates this figure could increase to 2026. The density and buildability of these apartments should begin construction starting in 2028.

Housing allocated to the open market may be rented or purchased, while social housing must be affordable. In general, most of the land the Government plans to mobilize to bring these 200,000 homes to fruition is private, and therefore, its construction will depend on private developers, with whom Isla has promised "collaboration." The Government assures that there is also a portion of public housing, but has not quantified the figure. Nor has it quantified the budget to implement this "national agreement," as Isla has presented it. "If we don't resolve access to housing, we put social progress at risk," warned the president, who presented this issue as a "national mission."

However, he does rely on the decree of urgent measures in housing and urban planning—which the government approved a few months ago and is now being processed in Parliament—to expedite the construction of all these apartments, because there are measures to reduce bureaucracy. In addition, the Generalitat (Catalan government) is also offering to take on the entire pre-construction process to speed up construction and ensure that it's not the local councils who are in charge.

The 50,000-apartment plan

In his speech, Isla also reviewed the status of the 50,000 homes he promised a year ago. What has been done and what remains to be done. After issuing a call to local councils to provide available plots of land—before the end of this year, Illa announced that there will be a second call for plots—the president confirmed that 22,241 homes have been allocated from 670 plots. Of these, 14,398 already have a developer. In addition, there are 4,000 homes "in production" from Incasòl for this year and 3,000 apartments that local councils are developing using Next Generation funds. Furthermore, the Generalitat (Catalan government) has purchased 1,800 apartments through preliminary purchase and redemption. In total, Isla estimates that half of the 50,000 apartments should be "in production" by next year. The deadline set for having them all built was 2030.

Aside from housing, Illa also announced the creation of eight new public nursing homes and a plan to reduce the waiting time for dependents "by half," in addition to increasing the number of places to study medicine by 50%. The president explained that the goal is to increase the number of places from the current 1,333 to 2,000, although he did not specify a timeline, but rather that they will do so "progressively with each new academic year." Isla also pledged to reach 4,000 firefighters in the next four years, a 37% increase. He also announced that the government wants to increase investment to 3 billion euros in the next budget.

Regarding security, Illa reiterated his "whoever does it pays" stance, but rejected "criminalizing the entire group of migrant people," in a message to the far right. In this sense, he defended immigration as a phenomenon that makes Catalonia "a better country." "From a social, human, cultural, and economic perspective, immigration enriches us," he asserted. The president also echoed the words of PP leaders such as the president of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, who distinguished between first- and second-class immigrants. "We will not play into the hands of some people's attempts to distinguish between good and bad immigration based on skin color or country of origin," he stated.

Demands the amnesty be applied

Aside from the housing announcement, Illa began his speech with a nod to Junts when he remembered the exiled MPs Carles Puigdemont and Lluís Puig. "This chamber is missing people: MPs Carles Puigdemont and Lluís Puig are missing," Illa stated, once again demanding the implementation of the amnesty law. "I call for the full implementation of the amnesty law." Since the Constitutional Court upheld the constitutionality of the law, Illa has intensified his calls for the Supreme Court to apply the amnesty law to all the leaders of the Process. In fact, Tuesday's remarks come just after the Constitutional Court admitted Carles Puigdemont's appeal for constitutional protection, but refused to lift his arrest warrant immediately.

In his second general policy debate as president, Illa also reviewed the priorities that have shaped his government: from administrative reform to "restoring the institutionality" of the Generalitat. On this last point, Isla rejected "confrontation as a political strategy" and defended "institutional collaboration" between state and European administrations. "Nothing is politically possible in isolation; everything can be achieved through collaboration," Illa stated, presenting Catalonia as an "example" of "constructive politics, capable of reaching agreements, and respectful practices."

"Catalonia, a Palestinian shelter"

In parallel, and just hours after the return of the members who embarked on the Global Sumud Flotilla, Illa announced that the Government will create the "Catalonia Palestinian Shelter" program, which aims to "welcome, care for, and dignify the temporary stays of Palestinians in Catalonia" through students from Catalonia. The Cooperation Agency will allocate two million euros next year to intensify humanitarian aid to Gaza and promote cooperation projects to rebuild essential services.