The government begins fining landlords who violate housing laws
It was a requirement of the Commons to negotiate budgets and Albiach announces that they will meet with the Government as early as next week
BarcelonaIt was the requirement that Comuns had set for budget negotiations, and this Tuesday it was met: the Catalan government has begun sanctioning landlords for violating the housing law in Catalonia. This was announced at a press conference by the leader of Comuns in the Catalan Parliament, Jéssica Albiach, after a meeting with the executive branch at the Palau de la Generalitat on Tuesday to assess compliance with the agreements they signed regarding supplementary budget allocations in the spring. According to Albiach, the fines total up to €120,000 and have been imposed on "legal entities." In a statement, the government confirmed that there are 13 open cases for sanctions: 7 are being handled by the Catalan Consumer Agency and 6 by the Housing Agency. However, it did not specify who is affected. This first round of sanctions comes just over a year after the sanctioning regime of the housing law was approved. Aside from the cases already in the fine phase, there are another 132 in preliminary investigations: 77 with the Housing Department and 55 with the Consumer Affairs Department. In addition, 26 cases have been closed because they "did not fall under the provisions of the law." The 13 open cases are at various stages. Two serious fines totaling €27,000 have already been imposed: one for raising the rent without justification, and the other because a property manager signed documents as a registered professional without actually being one. There is another case for a serious infraction for failing to include information about the reference index or the energy efficiency label. The fine could reach €25,000, but the final amount is still to be determined. Four more cases have been opened for failing to disclose the reference price in advertisements for properties located in high-demand areas. Of these four, one has resulted in a €1,750 fine, already paid, and in the remaining three, the penalty could reach €10,000. All of them pertain to consumer protection. Regarding housing, there are two cases with €30,000 fines, two with €3,000 fines, and two others "pending determination," according to the government. One of the tools that should help Territori monitor compliance with the law is... the register of large holderswhich is also agreed upon with Comuns but has been delayed again due to new modifications introduced by the Government during the public consultation phase. It should have been approved in November and still has no date.
Romero: "We continue working"
"We have forced the first sanctions against those who commit fraud related to the right to housing," Albiach asserted, arguing that Catalonia should at least have a budget this legislative term. This Thursday, the Comuns party will hold an extraordinary meeting of its executive committee to establish the main points of the negotiations, which they believe could be "short" if the central government cooperates. They have already outlined some key points, such as limiting speculative housing purchases, which they are studying in a group of experts shared with the Catalan government. Albiach indicated that issues such as housing and public services will be central to the discussions, as will the commuter rail network.
How does the rail crisis affect relations with the central government? Albiach has stated that they will not demand political "accountability" until the train crisis is over, which saw another service strike on Tuesday. However, she reiterated her suggestion that perhaps the Minister of Territory, Silvia Paneque, is burdened with too many responsibilities. She is not only in charge of the commuter rail network, but also of housing and the ecological transition, in addition to being the government spokesperson. This opinion was also conveyed on Tuesday to the Minister of Economy, Alícia Romero, who chaired the follow-up meeting on behalf of the executive branch. In any case, while awaiting ERC's decision, Comuns plans to hold its first negotiation meeting next week. In an interview on Catalunya Ràdio, Romero stated that today marks "a new path" which they hope will allow them to have the budget approved in the first quarter. "We continue working to deliver," the minister said. At this point, the main obstacle is the negotiation process. to unblock the collection of personal income tax from Catalonia, which is being cooked up in Madrid.
