Albert Batlle, deputy mayor of Seguridad and councilor responsible for the Ciutat Vella district, is a fundamental piece of the new municipal government of Barcelona, that of Mayor Jaume Collboni. And it is that Batlle is in charge of carrying out three of the main objectives of this executive for the current mandate, the Endreça plan - the recovery of Barcelona's public space -, the reform of the civics ordinance and also a comprehensive remodeling of the neighborhoods of Ciutat Vella.
Well, how is the tidying up of Barcelona going?
It's still early to take stock, we've only been there for a few weeks, we'll do it when the summer ends, but the truth is that so far it's going well. The Endreça plan is truly a comprehensive approach to all the problems linked to the use of public space in a city as dense as Barcelona. We are not just talking about security. The Endreça plan is a transversal programme. Look, during the Gràcia festivities there was some graffiti against tourism, and the brigades cleaned it up right away. Let's see who gets tired first, the cleaner or the dirtyer. What kind of fight justifies a graffiti? Sounds like bullshit to me, honestly. And the mayor has already read the primer to those responsible for the new cleaning contract. We are having a reasonably good summer, with a massive presence of tourists without serious incidents. It must be taken into account that the arrival of tourists attracts people engaged in illegal activities.
It now seems that one of his priorities is the fight against illegal street vending.
We have been fighting illegal trade for more than four years now. For me it is a great priority since I was appointed Deputy Mayor for Security in 2019. Then it was residual and now it continues to be. It was not reduced during the pandemic.
But the manteros say that it had been a long time since they had been pressured in this way, doesn't the replacement in the mayor's office have anything to do with it?
The manteros are just as pressured as in 2019. What happens is that now we have more urban guards, and in this way we can influence the issue a little more. The fight against illegal street vending is a long and sustained battle, an ongoing struggle.
And what is the next step?
We are going to dialogue with the rest of the municipal groups to reform the civility ordinance. And we are also going to seek citizen complicity, we are going to promote civility among all.
People believe that most of the fines imposed under the civics ordinance go uncollected.
Most of these fines are processed, and we hope that they will also be collected very soon. Improving the collection of these sanctions is one of the aspects that we are already studying. At this time we are already applying the highest sanctions that the civic ordinance allows us. Despite this, we want to continue differentiating a person who is calmly drinking a can of beer from others who assemble large bottles and disrupt coexistence.
And what plan do you have for Ciutat Vella?
Ciutat Vella is the reflection of Barcelona. All the inhabitants of Barcelona pass through Ciutat Vella at any given time. In addition, it concentrates a good part of the social problems of the city. It is a place that must be treated with special attention. We are meeting with neighbors and merchants to see how we approach the improvement of these neighborhoods.
Another crash plan?
Rather, a comprehensive intervention plan that contemplates security, urban planning, mobility... We have been reinforcing the police presence for months, but that is not enough. We are proposing an intervention like the one carried out at the end of the eighties.
Are they thinking of opening another Rambla del Raval?
No, there is no need. We are thinking of an intervention of a capillary nature, very detailed, with a lot of dialogue and citizen participation, with a lot of attention to the rehabilitation of houses, to stop commercial monocultures, to the fight against drugs and criminal occupations linked to drug trafficking.
You said that Ciutat Vella concentrates a large part of the city's social problems.
Ciutat Vella is a container for the social problems of the country as a whole. We need the co-responsibility of the Generalitat and the metropolitan municipalities.
Do you know that they say that Ciutat Vella is the district that crushes councilors?
I know that all this is going to be very hard, but I am approaching it with great enthusiasm. I'm seventy years old, but I still have rope.
