The president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, has rejected the «unacceptable interference» that the housing pact proposal from the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, represents, considering it «improvised», lacking budget, under the premise that «the State contributes less and less and the Autonomous Communities more and more», and for violating competences that belong to the different regions.
Specifically, the head of the Government has sent a letter to the regional presidents so that the Conference of Presidents that will take place this Friday in Barcelona serves as a starting point for the approval of a new State Housing Agreement.
In it, the President of the Government proposes an agreement based on increasing public investment, an indefinite safeguarding of the qualification of public protection housing, and the questioning and intervention in the existing real estate information in Spain.
In a response letter, the president of Madrid communicates that Madrid will not adhere to this proposal, considering it «improvised», without prior debate «that should have taken place in the Sectorial Housing Conference», and that it was communicated to the regional presidents by letter «48 hours before the Conference of Presidents took place».
«Not only does it lack planning and budgetary support, but it also clearly violates the competence distribution established in our Constitution,» adds Ayuso to justify the rejection in the letter accessed by Europa Press.
Likewise, she reproaches the central government’s interference in trying to «direct» the housing policies of each region «with imposed conditions and uniform measures» when this matter is «exclusively the competence of the autonomous communities.»
In this context, Ayuso emphasizes that if the central government wants to address the issue of housing «seriously», it must start by repealing the current Housing Law, «an interventionist, profoundly ideological, and technically failed norm.»
In her opinion, this regulation «has not solved the housing access problems, has deterred private investment, reduced the rental supply, increased prices, favored illegal occupancy and housing inquioccupation, violating the right to property» and «breaking the principle of political autonomy of the autonomous communities, trying to impose criteria that limit our capacity for action.»
FUNDING AS A TOOL OF IMPOSITION
«If you truly want the autonomous communities to collaborate, you must start by respecting the competence framework and refrain from using funding as a tool of political imposition and blackmail,» warns the president of Madrid to the central government in the letter, summarizing her proposal in that «the State contributes less and less and the autonomous communities, more and more.»
According to Ayuso’s interpretation of the pact proposal, it aims to triple the investment in housing «without explaining where these funds will come from or what criteria will be applied for their distribution.» She reminds Sánchez that without approved General State Budgets «or a clear roadmap, that commitment lacks real support.»
Similarly, she points out that, in addition to the funds allocated for housing policies, the central government has left more than 60% unexecuted. «Your offer to triple the investment in housing is not credible, given the history of your previous announcements regarding the construction of 184,000 homes or the public housing company,» she criticizes the President of the Government.
In the same vein, Ayuso argues that this approach would «constrain» the housing policies of the regional government, preventing it from implementing its own programs, especially since Madrid leads in the construction of protected housing in Spain, accounting for 53% of the national total.
Regarding the indefinite safeguarding of the qualification of protected housing, the president of Madrid conveys her disagreement with the idea of having to do so mandatorily in the case of privately promoted protected housing that does not receive public subsidies — in the Community, the qualification of publicly promoted protected housing already has indefinite status — considering that this would «seriously harm promoters and families, with homes losing value over time.»
«The government I lead has been promoting actions in favor of accessible housing for some time, also involving private promoters, and a dynamic approach that facilitates life for families. Not doing so would result in perpetuating dependence on public administrations, which is what you and your partners sadly tend to do,» argues the president of Madrid.
VERY CONCERNING CONTROL ATTEMPT
Regarding the proposal to intervene in the real estate information market under the pretext of ending a supposed «monopoly», the president has emphasized that it is «a very concerning attempt at control» and, consequently, expresses her rejection of using housing as an excuse to manipulate information or impose ideological filters.
«The existence of private portals should not be an obstacle or an excuse for the Ministry of Housing and Urban Agenda to improve the treatment and accessibility of data from the Housing Observatory, together with all the information from the rest of the Administrations, to which the autonomous communities contribute their own,» argues Ayuso.
In this context, the president of Madrid reiterates the defense of the Community of Madrid’s «management model based on freedom, legal security, and trust in those who create jobs, build housing, and contribute to the region’s progress and the prosperity of its residents.» «Because we believe it is the best for everyone, and I think the data support our conviction,» she concludes.
