The Catalan government and Comuns have restarted talks to pave the way for a budget agreement, focusing on housing policies. Comuns demands the creation of a General Directorate of Housing Discipline to centralize inspectors for fining rental fraud. Negotiations are informal so far, pending a prior deal with Esquerra Republicana.
The Catalan government and Comuns have resumed contacts to smooth a budget deal, sources say. This comes as the executive awaits a prior agreement with Esquerra Republicana, essential for parliamentary majorities. The aim is to pass the budgets by July 31.
Comuns prioritizes housing, advocating a new General Directorate of Housing Discipline under the Secretariat of Housing led by Lídia Guillén. It would centralize the 100 recently added inspectors from the Agència Catalana de l’Habitatge. “If they depend on the Agency, they get diluted and do not intervene as we believe they should,” party sources led by Jéssica Albiach argue.
Spokesman David Cid called on Catalunya Ràdio for “political direction” to empower the inspectors and impose “exemplary sanctions” on speculative investment funds. This builds on the February pact, which set fines up to €900,000 for fraud and boosted housing funds to €1.25 billion annually.
Talks restarted after the government's U-turn on sick leave incentives, which had strained ties. Meanwhile, ERC negotiations remain stalled, with republican demands on sovereignty and the government's proposal for an Investment Consortium.
