Protesters across Spain demand action over housing crisis

Key Takeaways

• Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets across Spain calling for greater protections for tenants after the government failed to get emergenc
• About 50 planned marches were expected to take place in cities such as Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona on Saturday - with some already under way
• "There is a lot of anger in the streets," said a spokesperson for the Valencia Tenants' Union, where a demonstration has already started
• Clashes have taken place between some protesters and police in the city
• The measures put forward by Pedro Sánchez's leftist coalition government on Friday followed public outcry over the eviction of an 87-year-old woman fr

Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets across Spain calling for greater protections for tenants after the government failed to get emergency housing legislation through parliament on Friday.

About 50 planned marches were expected to take place in cities such as Madrid, Valencia and Barcelona on Saturday - with some already under way.

"There is a lot of anger in the streets," said a spokesperson for the Valencia Tenants' Union, where a demonstration has already started. Clashes have taken place between some protesters and police in the city.

The measures put forward by Pedro Sánchez's leftist coalition government on Friday followed public outcry over the eviction of an 87-year-old woman from her home last month after she was unable to afford a sharp rent increase.

Her eviction triggered nationwide protests across Spain with protesters demanding lower rents, an end to evictions, and a ban on investment funds - or "vulture funds" as the government has termed them - buying property.

Sanchez's defeat in Congress on Friday heightens speculation that he might call an early general election, which was not due until next summer.

His coalition government, made up of his ruling Socialist party and junior partner the Sumar alliance, does not command a majority in parliament.

The legislation put forward in Congress on Friday was divided into two separate decrees.

The first decree included the suspension of evictions of vulnerable tenants until 2030, a two-year extension to rental leases due to expire before 2028, tax increases for tourist apartments, and a restriction on the purchase of residential properties by so-called "vulture funds".

The second decree included the automatic renewal of rental contracts, a major demand of many on the left and the Tenant's Union.

MPs rejected the first decree by 178 votes to 172 and voted against the second by 184 to 166.

Prior to the vote, the conservative People's Party (PP) and far-right Vox had already said they would vote against both initiatives, leaving the minority government depending on the support of smaller nationalist parties in Catalonia and the Basque Country.

However, by the eve of the parliamentary session, the centre-right, pro-independence Together for Catalonia (JxCat) had signalled its opposition to both laws, condemning them to failure.

Sánchez's ruling coalition hurriedly drew up the decree laws in an effort to defuse the housing protests that were sparked when 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal was evicted in September.

The social backlash led to the company that owns Abascal's flat, Urbagestión, negotiating her return to the flat on a low rent. However, protests have continued.

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More than 50 protests are planned to take place on Saturday after the government failed to get emergency legislation through parliament.