Barcelona City Council plenary session highlights the “failure” of Jaume Collboni's administration in managing homelessness

The increase in the number of homeless people in Barcelona, almost 2,000 according to the latest count by the Arrels Foundation, brought the issue to the last plenary session of the year of the Barcelona City Council, held this Friday. It was an extraordinary session forced by the municipal groups Junts and Barcelona en Comú, which had the support of ERC and PP to “acknowledge the failure of Mayor Jaume Collboni and his government in dealing with homelessness in the city, marked by inaction and an inability to offer adequate responses to the growing number of people sleeping rough.” The approved text also calls for a specific €60 million plan for the remainder of the term of office. The debate, which was conducted in a restrained tone, took place a few days after the Catalan government convened a summit with organizations and 30 municipalities to coordinate actions on the issue and in the same week that the municipal government presented a city roundtable to address it. The deputy mayor for Social Rights, Raquel Gil, admitted that the problem is “big,” but warned that its solution requires “supra-municipal leadership.” She also pointed out that the city council spends €51 million on homeless people. “But we cannot end it alone. It is a complex phenomenon that has to do with housing, employment, training, and health. It is a multifaceted problem,” he said, calling on the opposition to “be responsible when they ask for magic solutions.” Gil has offered an “outstretched hand” so that the opposition can side with the municipal government, entities, and other administrations. “Containment is possible, but no city has ever ended the phenomenon.” On behalf of Junts, Assumpció Laïlla recalled the increase indicated by Arrels' ‘devastating’ figures, 43% in two years, “which is not concentrated in a single area of the city, but extends throughout the city.” Carol Recio, from the Comuns party, linked “a crisis that is closely linked to the housing crisis” and criticized the PSC municipal government for “not providing a single extra bed” or “emergency flats to the social emergency table.” “Barcelona en Comú has long been calling for a crash plan with decisive action: they have a plan that we left behind, organizations that are asking for support, but a mayor who is passing the buck,” she said. On the ERC bench, Councilor Eva Baró spoke of “an extreme situation and a structural problem that must be solved.” “Wake up: in the City Council and in the Generalitat,” she warned, noting that far-right parties are capitalizing on issues such as people living on the streets. On behalf of the PP, Councilor Antonio Verdera called for “resources and concrete actions, because without more resources, talking about solutions is just rhetoric.” Representing Vox (which voted against the motion), Liberto Senderos criticized the “lack of self-criticism” and called for action against the settlements. The approved text calls for “promoting an action plan” for the remainder of the term with a budget of 60 million euros, which would incorporate resources throughout the city, with facilities in each district, reinforcement of the Housing First program, and specific resources for people with addictions. It also calls on the Generalitat to provide more funds to the city to address the problem.