Barcelona’s homeless crisis has reached historic highs, prompting a significant political confrontation at City Hall.
The city’s mayor, Jaume Collboni, has announced the creation of a new City Table to address homelessness, a move that comes just one day before opposition parties plan to formally censure his government’s handling of the issue.
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According to recent data, the number of people sleeping rough in Barcelona has surged dramatically, with figures from Arrels Fundació indicating nearly 2,000 individuals, a 43.2% increase from two years ago.
Barcelona Homeless Crisis Deepens Amid Political Tensions
The municipal government, using its own November figures, acknowledges around 1,800 people without homes, representing a 33% year-on-year rise. Consequently, the new City Table aims to bring together a broad coalition. This body will include the Síndic de Barcelona (ombudsman), David Bondia, alongside social entities, trade unions, the FAVB (Federation of Barcelona Neighbourhood Associations), professional colleges, and expert individuals.
Raquel Gil, Deputy Mayor for Social Rights, stated that Friday’s extraordinary plenary session was not convened as a formal vote of no confidence. Furthermore, she emphasised the administration waited to launch the table until there was movement at the Catalan level regarding homelessness. Last week, the Catalan ombudsman, Esther Giménez-Salinas, organised a meeting with different administrations and called for a “country-wide agreement” to tackle the problem.
However, opposition leaders strongly disagree with this characterisation. In conversation with Tot Barcelona, Jordi Martí Galbis, president of Junts at the City Council, asserted the plenary will serve as an “unofficial reproval” of the mayor. He claims it will highlight the “failure” of municipal policies in this area, a sentiment echoed by other opposition groups.
A Call for Coordinated Action and Concrete Demands
The Collboni government argues that a solution to the Barcelona homeless crisis cannot come solely from the local level. Instead, they advocate for a “transversal” approach involving a coordinated response from all administrations. Until now, the city council believes Barcelona has led this effort in isolation.
Sònia Fuertes, Commissioner for Social Action, stated the City Table is born with the intention of being “operative,” not merely deliberative. Its goal is to generate consensus to reach the country-wide agreement proposed by the ombudsman. Meanwhile, two politically opposed parties, Junts and Barcelona en Comú, have united to call the extraordinary plenary session for Friday morning.
Both formations are demanding an action plan endowed with 60 million euros and the opening of a low-demand shelter in each district. They denounce what they call “inaction and Collboni’s inability to offer adequate responses to the growing number of people sleeping rough.” This political clash underscores the severe pressure the Barcelona homeless crisis is placing on the city’s leadership and social services, a situation recently reported to be affecting a significant number of children.
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