Los mayors of the main capitals of the European Union, including Rome, Paris and Barcelona, have delivered a plan to the European Commission this Thursday in which they ask the Community Executive to establish a definition of areas under housing stressmore financing for housing and regulate short-term rentals.
“Us we are on the front line of this fight In favor of affordable housing, we need regulatory instruments, we need more money to be able to give results to our fellow citizens,” said Jaume Collbonimayor of Barcelona, in statements to the press in Brussels. Collboni, together with the mayors of Rome, Roberto Gualtieri, and Paris, Emmanuel Grégoirehas met with the first vice president of the Commission, Teresa Riberathe vice-president in charge of Cohesion policy, Raffaele Fitto, and the housing commissioner, Dan Jorgensen.
“If access to housing is a priority for a large part of European cities that we are suffering a very important affordability crisis,” Collboni said in a statement to the media, “it is obvious that the European Commission and the European institutions also make this issue a priority“. Housing “is a European problem,” recognized Ribera, who has committed to take into account the mayors’ suggestions in the development of the European affordable housing law.
The mayor of Barcelona, Jaume Collboni, during a press conference in Brussels. / European Union.
Stressed areas
In a document delivered to both Ribera herself, Fitto and Jorgensenthe mayors have identified six areas where the Commission can do more. In particular, the councilors point to the issue of stressed areas, financing, speculation, short-term rentals, lgovernance and homelessness.
“What all the cities that are part of the network are proposing, among other things, is to give a common criterion for all European cities so that the regulations can be applied and the funds we need to promote protected housing can be reached,” Collboni explained. In particular, this involves a common criterion to define what is considered a “stressed zone”.
“To unify criteria, effectively, we have to look for the concept that determines when a population, a municipality, is in a housing crisis situation“, he added. The mayor of Barcelona explained that this measure would allow others to be implemented such as caps on rental prices or the termination of licenses for tourist apartments when the conditions are met.
more money
Another of the great demands of the mayors, in the midst of negotiating the community budget for the next seven years, is more money. The mayors criticize in their plan that “There is an important disconnect” among the objectives of the European plan for affordable housing and “committed resources”. From their point of view, the allocated resources are far from being sufficient to alleviate financing needs.
Beyond European funds, the mayors have recognized the importance of the role of national governments. In this sense, they have once again claimed the need toand suspend the growth and stability pact so that investment in housing does not count for public deficit debt purposes.
Jaume Collboni, mayor of Barcelona, and Teresa Ribera, vice president of the European Commission, during a meeting in Brussels. / European Union.
Fight against speculation
Two other fundamental questions for mayors arethe need to fight speculation and regulate short-term rentals. In this sense, they have asked the European Commission for an initiative against real estate speculation that improves transparency and allows for better application of the rules to combat anti-competitive practices. They have also called recognize housing as “a social good” so that governments, regions and cities can take action.
Regarding short-term rentals, the mayors have asked for a regulation that respects national powers and premises, but allows “to guarantee the affordability and availability of housing, but also to protect and maintain the habitability and quality” of the urban environment. “We need the instruments to make decisions in our citiesthose that each city democratically wants to take,” Collboni insisted.
The delegation of ‘Mayors for housing’ during their visit to the European Commission. / European Union.
Collboni will continue together with Gualtieri, y Grégoirethe round of contacts meeting with the president of the European Council Antonio Costa. The mayor of Barcelona has thanked the Portuguese for his workwhich for the first time introduced the issue of housing on the agenda of the European Council, raising the issue to EU leaders.
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