Junts wants to reopen the negotiation on housing just one day after provoking, along with PP and Vox, the fall of the two decrees approved by the Government. The spokesperson for the Catalan formation in Congress, Miriam Nogueras, has urged the PSOE this Saturday to sit down again to negotiate using as a starting point the alternative text that her party delivered on Friday to Minister Isabel Rodríguez. "It depends on them," she stated in an interview on RAC1, where she defended that there is room to reach an agreement if the socialists agree to review their approach.
The call comes after one of the most significant parliamentary defeats for the Executive regarding housing. Congress rejected this Friday the two royal decree laws promoted by PSOE and Sumar: the first fell by 178 votes to 172, with PP, Vox, Junts, and UPN against, while the second, dedicated to the automatic renewal of certain rental contracts, also failed to gain a majority. The regulations included measures on protection against evictions, rentals, taxation, and limitations on certain operations by large investors.
Nogueras: "I hope the PSOE sits down again"
Nogueras maintains that the decrees presented by the Government were, in the opinion of Junts, "poorly formulated, poorly written, legally inapplicable" and could end up exacerbating some of the problems they intended to solve. This is the political and legal assessment of the Catalan formation, while the Executive defended during the debate that its measures were applicable and the result of months of negotiation with the groups. "I hope the PSOE sits down again. That would mean they are eager to work on this solution," the spokesperson for Junts pointed out.
The leader has also rejected the accusations that Junts is responsible for blocking protective measures in housing and has said she is "tired of this permanent campaign" from those who, according to her, "demonize" her formation for holding different positions from the Government. Nogueras believes that the debate is increasingly conditioned by the electoral scenario and has stated that PSOE, PP, and the rest of the forces already have "their eyes more on the campaign."
An alternative decree of 59 pages
Junts delivered this Friday to the Government a 59-page draft that it presents as an alternative to the rejected texts. Its starting point is different from that of the Executive: the party argues that a large part of the housing crisis comes from the shortage of supply and maintains that the protection of vulnerable households should be financed primarily with public resources, avoiding transferring those costs to small property owners.
Among the proposed measures is an extraordinary agreed extension of habitual housing contracts, for annual periods and up to a maximum of two years. Alternatively, the owner and tenant could sign a renewal or a new contract with a rent at least 5% lower than the previous one. Unlike the Government's second decree, this extension would not be automatic if there is no agreement between both parties.
The text also includes a temporary deduction in the IRPF for habitual housing rentals during 2026 and 2027: taxpayers with a taxable base equal to or less than 33,007.20 euros could deduct 15% of the amounts paid. Junts also proposes tax incentives for transferring vacant homes to administrations or public entities intended for social housing, a reduced VAT of 5% for certain newly constructed residential buildings and modifications in the protection of mortgage debtors.
The dispute over investment funds
One of the major points of friction between Junts and the Government is in the measures aimed at the so-called "vulture funds." The Executive defended that its first decree introduced limitations on speculative purchases and stated during the debate that it had incorporated a large part of the demands made by Junts. The Catalan party denies this and argues that the text still allowed certain operations by investment funds.
The Junts deputy Marta Madrenas, one of the party's negotiators, rejected this Friday on RAC1 that the Government had incorporated 90% of its proposals and cited as an example the mechanism designed to limit certain acquisitions below a percentage of the property's value. In Junts' view, that formula did not constitute a general prohibition of purchases made by funds. The Government, on the other hand, argued that the package offered protection to tenants and limited speculative operations without removing housing from the market.
PSOE assures that it is willing to negotiate
From the PSOE, Montse Mínguez has defended that the socialists are willing to keep the negotiation open, but she has questioned the arguments used by Junts to reject the decrees. The spokesperson stated on Friday on RAC1 that the texts had also been worked on with the Catalan formation and described some of the reasons put forward to vote against as "excuses."
During the plenary session, Minister Isabel Rodríguez had offered Junts to approve the first of the decrees and process it immediately afterward as a urgent bill, which would have allowed amendments to be introduced during its passage through Congress. Junts rejected that option and maintained its negative vote, while Patxi López defended that the PSOE would not withdraw texts that, according to him, "work."
Housing intersects with Sánchez's electoral reflection
Junts' new attempt to open conversations also comes at a time of political uncertainty. After losing the two votes on Friday, Pedro Sánchez announced a period of reflection over the weekend to decide his next steps, including whether or not to opt for early general elections. There is currently no announced decision.
Nogueras has linked both debates and has presented the PSOE with two paths: negotiate the new decree or, in his words, continue with a strategy aimed at possible elections. "It depends on them to decide if they want to provide a solution to an emergency situation or if they want to keep feeding a narrative that is a lie and want elections," he stated.
The movement thus leaves a new phase of negotiation open just 24 hours after the parliamentary failure. Junts has already put an alternative text on the table and the PSOE claims to maintain its willingness to dialogue, but the differences remain significant on issues such as the renewal of contracts, the role of private owners, intervention on investment funds, and the distribution of the cost of social protection policies. The next step will depend on whether both formations sit down to negotiate again while Sánchez decides what direction the Government takes after Friday's defeat.