Spain's Sanchez pledges tenant-protection bill after 87-year-old's eviction
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said his government will present a tenant-protection draft at Tuesday’s cabinet meeting, following the high-profile eviction of 87-year-old Maricarmen Abascal.
At a Socialist Party gathering ahead of upcoming municipal and regional elections, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez assured Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman evicted from her home, that his administration is working intensively on a tenant-protection bill to be tabled at the next cabinet meeting on Tuesday. He called the housing emergency a humanitarian issue affecting millions of Spaniards and appealed to all parliamentary factions to help secure parliamentary approval.
The proposed “Maricarmen decree” would introduce automatic lease renewals and stricter limits on evictions. However, Sanchez’s Socialist government does not hold a parliamentary majority, leaving the bill’s fate uncertain. The eviction has ignited protests, with hundreds of demonstrators occupying a large plaza in Madrid’s tourist district to demand broader tenant rights. Earlier attempts to pass similar legislation this year were rejected.
Why it matters
The proposal could reshape Spain's rental market and affect millions facing housing insecurity.
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