Entities fighting the housing problem, as well as the government, consider the European Commission’s desire to take “palpable, concrete and effective” measures in this area commendable and demand that the specific circumstances of each be taken into account. territory and, in particular, the singularities presented by the housing emergency in the Balearic Islands.
In this sense, representatives of the European Network to Combat Poverty in the Balearic Islands (EAPN) and the Platform for People Affected by Mortgages (PAH) of Mallorca spoke in statements to Europa Press, which, although that they view favorably the intentions of the European institutions, They regret that policies are only promoted when the crisis reaches certain groups after decades of devastation on vulnerable classes.
On the Government side, they celebrate the impetus that the institutions want to give to housing policies due to the importance of the problem in the territory, while demanding the measures that the Executive chaired by Marga Prohens develops.
The European Commission wants to take concrete measures in the area of housing to play a more relevant role in this area, but without ceasing to respect the principles of subsidiarity and proportionality, since it aims to “support and not so much replace” the States members and entities. local authorities, who will continue to hold the main powers.
This was recently indicated by the Vice-President of the Commission and responsible for promoting the lifestyle, Margaritis Schinas, during a debate on affordable housing at the headquarters of the European Parliament in Strasbourg (France), reports Europa Press.
“Access to affordable housing, including social housing, is the basis not only of social cohesion, but also of European growth and competitiveness”he declared. The Commission vice-president insisted that housing would be a priority in the next policy cycle and announced that, for the first time, Brussels would launch a plan to address the structural drivers of the housing emergency.
The technical director of EAPN Baleares, Andreu Grimalt, Although he appreciated the will of the European institutions, he regretted that they had to wait for the housing emergency to knock on the doors of the middle classes and certain groups such as civil servants or security forces and bodies. “despite the fact that vulnerable groups have suffered from this tragedy for many years.”
EU housing plans
European Union projects largely consist of offering technical assistance to states and cities and promoting, beyond regulation, additional resources to address the lack of investment in the construction sector and strengthen the offer.
Thus, we would work with the European Investment Bank (EIB) on an investment platform for affordable housing with the aim of attracting public and private investment. The Commission will propose to inject liquidity into the market by allowing Member States to double investments planned under cohesion policy in housing.
Grimalt expressed his doubts about the effectiveness of the measures promoted from Brussels and the number of powers they can assume, also taking into account that the same parties – in reference to the PP and the PSOE – which “have not never showed courage”, are the majority formations in community institutions.
For Grimalt, the key to these future policies is above all to stop considering housing as a market good and to give priority to its social function.
On behalf of the PAH, its spokesperson, Angela Pons, demanded that community policies take into account the specificities of each territory and that the resources mobilized be used solely and exclusively for social assistance and public housing, knowing that private construction “is more than protected”.
Pons emphasizes that only the acquisition of empty housing from large owners would make it possible to obtain immediate results. “If a colleague is expelled tomorrow, I would not have to wait two years to have an alternative,” he argues. The PAH representative insists on the fact that The Balearic Islands and Palma, as well as other autonomous communities and capitals, are facing a “very serious” housing problem, of which residents are the main victims.
Activists who defend those affected by mortgages, while admitting that there is land on which to build, point out that, at least in the archipelago, There are many empty homes that can be rehabilitated, at a lower price than new construction.
For his part, the Director General of Housing and Architecture, Jose Francisco Reynes, underlines that in the Balearic Islands, as in other similar European regions, a global problem is further accentuated by the condition of a limited territory to which is added tourist pressure which does not distinguish between large cities and small ones cities.
“If an intervention on the housing market is proposed at community level, it will be necessary to analyze the real impact on a territory like ours,” he maintains.
EAPN and the PAH agree on the emergency context in terms of housing that the archipelago is going through and on the need to activate urgent measures.
From the PAH it is warned that there are hundreds of cases of homes in which two or three families are forced to live together, with the psychological effects that this circumstance has on the population. “These are not at all isolated cases,” they warn.
Grimalt, for his part, insists on the need for a 180 degree turnaround for housing policies in order to prevent situations such as caravans or unsanitary housing from going from anecdote to generalization.
“If the construction of social housing were accelerated now, it would still take around 15 years to be able to have a stock in good condition,” he warns, which, according to him, leads “many people to remain condemned to not being able to access a right like housing.
Housing situation in the Balearic Islands
With data from January this year, the Balearic Housing Institute (Ibavi) manages 2,362 housing units for a list of 4,366 people awaiting a reward. Last year, this figure decreased by 6.7% due to the allocation of accommodation, but also due to cancellations for various reasons.
The PAH, for its part, emphasizes 1,000 evictions recorded last year in the Balearic Islands and in the 178 that are registered according to official data in the first quarter of this year.
In addition, activists know about 40,000 empty homes owned by large landlords, with data from 2022, and the fact that 70% of landlords who own rental homes are not registered, a circumstance that prevents tenants from opt for public assistance.
Faced with this scenario, the Government, through a shock plan comprising several lines of action, aspires, in a first phase, to put more than 7,000 housing units on the market at affordable prices for residents.
More specifically, the program Build to Rent Some 4,000 homes are planned and, in the first phase, agreements have already been signed with municipalities to build around 1,800 homes, the majority (1,200) in Palma.
with the program rental insurance, which will be presented soon, it should put on the market in a first phase between 2,000 and 3,000 empty homes at prices 30% lower than the market price.
Ibavi is currently planning the construction of 600 protected houses. The regional executive is also preparing a new housing law, which is currently undergoing consultation before the draft is developed.
