The European Commissioner for Housing, Dan Jørgensen, met this Tuesday at Barcelona City Council with mayor Jaume Collboni during a visit in which the Catalan capital has positioned itself as a reference for addressing the housing crisis in Europe.
The European Union wants to be inspired by some of the policies promoted in Barcelona to seek answers to a problem that affects numerous cities on the continent. Jørgensen has explained that its objective is to know closely the measures applied in the city and analyze their possible fit at a European scale.
"We want to see what we can do throughout Europe and, above all, so that the policies we can promote do not represent a step backward for this city" - Dan Jørgensen, European Commissioner for Housing
Barcelona as a laboratory of housing policies
During the meeting, the commissioner has focused on the declaration of a stressed area to limit rental prices. In his opinion, this tool allows to define where the problem is instead of extending rules generally to the whole society.
Jørgensen has also admitted the impact of short-term rentals on housing access. He has recognized that its magnitude causes many people to end up being expelled from their neighborhoods, a reality that Barcelona has long been denouncing in the debate about the residential market.
The visit takes place while Brussels tries to outline its own strategy on this matter. The European Union presented in December its first affordable housing plan and is now working on a new housing law that, in principle, should be closed before the summer.
Collboni demands direct funds for the city councils
In the meeting, Jaume Collboni has demanded European funding to build affordable housing and undertake rehabilitations. The mayor has argued that cities need direct resources if they are required to assume a central role in the response to the housing emergency.
"We ask that there be direct and accessible funding for city councils. We believe it is of an indisputable logic that, if you have a plan and a law, you have to have a budget" - Jaume Collboni, mayor of Barcelona
The mayor has also asked that the future European housing law respect local autonomy and the principle of subsidiarity, with the idea of preserving the capacity for action of the municipalities in the face of a crisis that manifests itself differently in each territory. The meeting in Sant Jaume square thus reinforces Barcelona's role in a debate that Brussels wants to transfer to the whole of Europe without blurring the cities' margin of decision.