The far right enters the fight for affordable housing

BarcelonaThe interests of the far right and big business often go hand in hand. Lowering taxes, raising corporate profits, privatizing pensions, and ultimately shrinking the state are part of their code of ethics. But sometimes these interests clash, especially when protectionist measures are involved. It is within this context that the latest major strategy of the far right internationally must be understood: making housing affordable, one of the population's main problems. US President Donald Trump is paving the way with interventionist measures that declare war on big investors. The most striking: the announced ban on the purchase of single-family homes to large corporations as a method to achieve lower rental prices. In Spain, Vox is a star pupil, although until now, collusion with groups that specialize in evicting tenants has been the defining characteristic of the Spanish far right. Now, on a new path to capture the working-class vote, in Catalonia and throughout the StateVox joins this international trend, also followed by other parties within the Patriots for Europe coalition, which includes prominent far-right figures such as France's Marine Le Pen, Hungary's Viktor Orbán, and Italy's Matteo Salvini. Far from the ultraliberalism advocated by Argentine President Javier Milei, this conglomerate has opted for a combination of liberal and interventionist ideas, seasoned with rhetoric against international investment funds, a tactic also employed by the populist left. In a conversation with ARA, Carlos Hernández Quero, Vox's strategist and deputy spokesperson in Congress, points out that not many governments within his political family have yet chosen to impose such clear limits on investment funds. And he justifies this approach. Trumpian"It's a matter of understanding the purpose of the policies. Having property ownership as widely distributed as possible is best," he states. His premise is that "living in a home you own" is the most desirable and that to achieve this, "we must combat unfair competition from large funds or foreign capital." In other words, they advocate for market intervention, but at the same time, "promoting construction and opting for low taxes." A "less dogmatic" approach than that of the United States, with the objective of "discouraging purchases by international players," which "heats up the market and drives up prices." "People live in houses, not corporations," Trump said to justify the announcements of recent weeks.

International Horizon

Although the American example is important, Vox and its allies have others. For example, Hungary, governed by Orbán, has promoted soft loans for first-time homebuyers—loans launched by the state government with very favorable conditions, at 3%—in addition to public guarantees and family support such as income tax exemption for families with three or more children. There is also the tax policy for first-time homebuyers in Portugal—with a center-right government—where those under 35 are exempt from taxes such as property transfer tax. Or in Switzerland, with the Koller Law, which Quero points out "de facto makes it impossible for foreigners to buy property."

The argument against international funds is typical of Le Pen's ideology, with the "anti-speculation" rhetoric used in its defense of a wealth tax that would exclude the middle class. Ultimately, they advocate for nationals to have priority access to housing, a key measure for Vox and one shared by the Italians Giorgia Meloni and Matteo Salvini. All of this is accompanied by massive construction plans, such as Italy's plan for 100,000 affordable apartments over the next decade. Vox also wants to give priority to Spaniards when buying homes, include surcharges on property transfer taxes that can double the price—to prevent speculation by foreigners—and, as is typical of the far right, strengthen border controls and "deport" hundreds of thousands of people each year, measures they claim to guarantee.

Ideologies

The distributism to which Quero refers is a key doctrine of 20th-century economic conservatism with a social emphasis. It was endorsed by the Church under Pope Leo XIII, author of the encyclical Rerum Novarumwhere he attempted to outline a response to social problems with an eye on the fight against growing communism—Unió was a major exponent in Catalonia. Vox combines this with tax liberalism and deregulation, and an anti-immigration stance.

On the other hand, the fight against "big capital" was also part of the Falange's core ideology, which, on paper, defended a national-syndicalist revolution based on the defense of private property. Hence, it is understandable that with the at least aesthetically pleasing mix of "fatherland and social justice," they also delve into the discourse against international funds. This is a refrain adopted by Núcleo Nacional, which, from its neo-Nazi perspective, mixes it with hatred against Jews. That is why this Saturday, this neo-Nazi group is holding a demonstration against the BlackRock fund, under the slogan "death to capital" and with a link to "usury" using anti-Semitic symbolism.