Spain's parliamentary left has united outside a Madrid hospital. The groups want stronger rent controls and longer protections before the Government approves its housing decree.
Maricarmen Abascal remains at Madrid's Hospital Gregorio Marañón after being evicted from her home last Wednesday. The 87-year-old woman has reduced mobility. Doctors hospitalised her after severe exhaustion.
The case has brought Spain's parliamentary left together. The Sindicato de Inquilinas organised the appearance outside the hospital. Izquierda Unida, Comuns, Más Madrid, Compromís, Movimiento Sumar, Podemos, ERC, EH Bildu and BNG joined it.
Two Sumar ministers were also there. They were Health Minister Mónica García and Youth and Children Minister Sira Rego. Their presence put the housing fight inside the coalition Government as well.
If the Government approves the housing decree, it will have to be confirmed by Congress within 30 days or it will lose its force.
The groups want the Council of Ministers to approve what they call the Decreto Maricarmen. Sumar wants the package on the cabinet's agenda for Tuesday, 29 September.
The demands are specific. They include an immediate rent freeze and a stronger two-year extension for rental contracts that end before June 2028. The groups also want rules for room rentals and automatic contract renewals.
Those measures are still under discussion. They have not been approved.
The extension period is the main dispute. Sumar sources say the coalition partners agreed last July to provide protection for the next two years. They now accuse the socialists of trying to cut that period in half.
Maricarmen's home is another unresolved issue. Some voices think its possible expropriation will stay outside the decree. Others insist that no demand has been dropped.
The previous housing decree failed in Congress. The PP, Vox and Junts voted against it.
The PSOE now faces the same numbers problem. Junts has refused to support some of the proposed measures. RTVE reports that the Government is weighing Junts' demands while it also needs Podemos to support the decree in Congress.
That leaves little room.
The smaller coalition partner wants the text settled before it reaches the chamber. It does not want to depend on a last-minute parliamentary rescue.
The negotiating agenda also covers seasonal and tourist rentals, alongside room rentals and automatic renewals. Sumar has warned that it will not accept a watered-down text that leaves these forms of housing pressure outside the decree.
Mónica García says the talks remain far from an agreement. She has also said her side will not accept partial solutions. García described Maricarmen's case as a turning point between protecting families and allowing speculation to continue.
The pressure follows an earlier report on the dispute around an offer from Urbagestión and the campaign that followed.
The demands reach beyond the coalition's internal dispute. Enrique Santiago of IU says workers can spend 50 to 60 percent of their salary on housing.
Alberto Ibáñez of Compromís wants progress towards indefinite rentals and rules for room rentals. Gerardo Pisarello of Comuns says the measures now on the table cannot be negotiated away.
ERC has urged the groups to secure approval of an ambitious decree. It directed that appeal at Junts.
Podemos calls the Sindicato de Inquilinas' demands a minimum. The party has also called for the expropriation of homes held by vulture funds. Its representatives say the Government negotiated with Junts without showing the groups expected to support the decree a complete document.
The PSOE and Sumar have disagreed over housing policy for years. Sumar, and Unidas Podemos before it, has pushed harder for rent intervention. The law creating stressed areas has barely been applied because regions governed by the PP oppose it.
The current fight is therefore about more than Maricarmen's case. It concerns whether the coalition will impose enforceable protections or approve another narrower package.
The disputed points are concrete: the length of contract extensions, the treatment of room and seasonal rentals, rent freezes and the Government's response to the limits imposed by Junts.
The reason is simple.
The appearance outside the hospital gives the smaller parties a shared platform. It also leaves the PSOE with a choice. The Government can back a decree that meets their demands, or put forward a text vulnerable to rejection and an internal revolt.
