The Parliament will decide on September 1 whether to appeal to the Constitutional Court the state law for the Right to Housing, one of the flagship regulations of the Executive of Pedro Sánchez, for invading the powers of the Generalitat.
This is a law that went ahead with the support of some of the usual partners of the coalition government of PSOE and Unidas Podemos in Congress, including Esquerra and EH Bildu.
Thus, the republican group of the Catalan Chamber –also the common ones– will now have to pronounce on the state regulations after Junts has requested it. In the formation of Oriol Junqueras they have not given any clues as to what they will do. It is expected that today they will reveal his position, according to sources consulted.
The PSC has already made it clear that it will vote against appealing, while the commons will not define their vote until the days before the plenary session. PP, Vox and Ciudadanos have not decided either.
The post-convergents did not support the regulation in the Lower House – neither did the PNV – and they requested a report from the Consell de Garanties Estatutàries, the Catalan advisory body, on the constitutionality of the regulation that was approved in April and has been exhibited by the PSOE and UP as a milestone in this electoral cycle.
Said report considers that the powers of the Catalan administration are violated. For this reason, JxCat advocates challenging from Parliament articles 2, 15, 16, 17, 18, 27, 28, 29 and the first and second transitory provisions as well as the seventh final provision of the law. These are points that affect the limitation of prices and the declaration of stressed areas, among other aspects.
For the same reason, due to the invasion of powers, the Government of Iñigo Urkullu decided a few days ago to file an appeal before the Constitutional Court, with the Socialists, who are part of the coalition of the Basque Executive, voting against. The jeltzales challenged seven articles and four provisions of the regulations.
However, the first regional government to appeal the housing law was that of the Community of Madrid, led by the PP with Isabel Díaz Ayuso.
The Catalan Chamber approved its own housing law that allowed rental prices to be capped in the previous legislature, but it was appealed by the PP and the Government – without requesting its automatic suspension – a few months later. The High Court suspended some articles that allowed limiting price increases and now applies the state standard.
For the Parliament to file an appeal, there must be a majority of votes in favor in plenary, therefore the position of ERC will be decisive, just like that of the commons, both arithmetically and symbolicly because, predictably, the vote will coincide with the negotiations for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez.
In recent days, the Republicans have called on Junts to negotiate jointly in Madrid, although those of Jordi Turull, who leave command of the ship in the hands of Carles Puigdemont in relation to the investiture, have set as a prior condition that do not support any president of the government who does not allow a referendum.
Both Junts and ERC have been urged to speak discreetly this August to articulate a common front, but the mistrust between the two actors is still present and JxCat, in Parliament, does not loosen the level of demand with its former partner.
To show a button. Last week the group commanded by Albert Batet requested that the Councilor of the Presidency, Laura Vilagrà, appear to maintain the pilot test of the universal basic income despite the fact that the Catalan Chamber has taken a position against it. The post-convergents also accused the Government of Pere Aragonès of ignoring what the plenary session of the Parliament marks and of "turning its back on it".
