Four days after Pedro Sánchez proclaimed his willingness to reach out to Junts again, no contact has yet been made to "restart" the relationship. However, the Spanish Prime Minister remains hopeful and is adopting a "patience" approach, aware that a complete "reconstruction" will not be possible until Carles Puigdemont returns. In an informal conversation with journalists after the Constitution Day ceremony at the Congress, Sánchez asserted that "there is a legislature" until 2027 and guaranteed that he will present a budget for next year. Amid a right-wing offensive against him, cornered by internal scandals—such as the sexual harassment case involving former PSOE leader Paco Salazar, which has haunted him throughout the day—and without a guaranteed parliamentary majority, the Socialist leader emphasized his resilience in what he described as a "complicated legislature." "We have won all the important battles," he concluded.

Housing is the primary concern of citizens. The rise in prices seems unstoppable. A European Council report reflects the severity of the housing crisis in Barcelona. It is the second city on the continent with the most expensive rents in relation to salaries. Its citizens must spend 74% of their average salary to pay for an apartment in the city center. Only Lisbon surpasses it.

After noting the reluctance of some regions governed by the People's Party (PP), such as Madrid, to guarantee the right to abortion for women who request it, Pedro Sánchez announced that he would incorporate this right into the Constitution to "protect" it. The Spanish government's path is to reform article 43 of the Magna Carta for its incorporation: "The right of women to voluntary termination of pregnancy is guaranteed. The exercise of this right, in all cases, will be guaranteed by the public authorities, ensuring its provision under conditions of effective equality, as well as the protection of women's fundamental rights." Now, does this path really protect that right? In recent hours, various voices from the legal world have questioned it.

How can we combat the global climate of regression in terms of rights and freedoms? Advances achieved over decades are at risk from the offensive of a reactionary populism that increasingly dictates the agenda and public debates. We are seeing this in Trump's United States and throughout Europe. Catalonia and Spain are no exception. It is in this context that the Spanish government's intention to protect the right to abortion within the Constitution must be understood. But is this a genuine movement or a maneuver to seek a clash with the right? Former minister Irene Montero (Podemos) has been quick to denounce the alleged maneuver by the PSOE to use women's rights for a purely partisan self-interest operation.

Pedro Sánchez's response to The ultraconservative offensive of the PP and Vox against social and reproductive rights of women. The Spanish government announced this Friday that it will push for a constitutional reform to include the right to abortion in the Constitution, a measure with which the executive branch hopes to combat "any attempt at a rollback that threatens women's rights." This is a long-standing demand by feminist and left-wing groups to prevent changes in government and parliamentary majorities from curtailing rights, as unsuccessfully attempted by the PP's Minister of Justice, Alberto Ruiz-Gallardón, who, following strong social protests, withdrew the proposal and resigned in 2014. Adding abortion to the Constitution would make Spain the second country in the world to take this step, after France. "In a global context of an offensive against sexual and reproductive rights, Spain takes another step toward enshrining the freedom and autonomy of women to decide about their lives," the same sources add. The initiative entails a change to Article 43 of the constitutional text, which is not easy because it requires a qualified majority of three-fifths of both Congress and the Senate, meaning the support of the PP is needed.

The sun might have shone on the event commemorating the 43rd anniversary of the Spanish Constitution this Monday morning outside Parliament in Madrid, but the cold has been the real protagonist of an event which, once again, was held outdoors because of the pandemic. The low temperatures were reflected in attendants thick coats, but also cooled any prospects of successfully addressing constitutional reform. The rift between PSOE and PP was as evident as ever, and not even coalition partners PSOE and Unidas Podemos have a common position regarding the modification of the Magna Carta.