The extraordinary plenary session of Congress to validate the housing decrees becomes a key moment for the legislature

This Friday's extraordinary plenary session in Congress to validate the two decree laws on housing should be a crucial moment for the legislature and for Spanish society. The case of Maricarmen Abascal, the 87-year-old woman evicted from her lifelong home by a court order, has catalyzed disenchantment with a political class that until now has shown itself incapable of facing an existential problem like this. If Junts, as pointed out this Thursday night, wrecks the initiative, the opportunity will have been wasted to finally begin to provide answers to the justified fatigue.

The 40dB survey. which this Friday published EL PAÍS and Cadena SER reveals the scope of the crisis. The difficulty in accessing a house is the second cause of concern for citizens, only behind inflation and the cost of living. The concern is transversal among voters, regardless of ideological inclination, and similar among all generations, from young to old. And the situation, far from improving, is getting worse: 80% of those surveyed find it more difficult to get a home today than five years ago.

The mobilizations after the eviction of Maricarmen Abascal have been the impetus to articulate a consensus between parties that had proven impossible throughout this year. The anti-eviction moratorium declined in February due to the votes of the PP, Vox, Junts and PNV, the same ones that once again stopped the extension of rents and the cap on their updating in April. The Government decided not to present a new package of measures in July to avoid another foreseeable parliamentary defeat. But the work done then has allowed it to act quickly when indignation has erupted and social pressure has prevented further delays.

To take advantage of this momentum, the part related to the automatic extension of rental contracts, which had fewer options to obtain validation in plenary, was separated from the main decree, the one with the most possibilities of garnering broader support. It was one of the controversial points. If this part falls, it can always be processed as a bill, which allows amendments to be included to improve the balance between the necessary protection for the tenant and legal security for those who rent a home. If Junts' rejection definitively ruins the decrees, it would mean a return to square one, and the legislature, already in its final months, would be affected.

It's time for politics. Because the housing crisis, which is social, is also political and there can be no other response that does not consist of deliberation, the formation of majorities beyond ideological barriers and the parliamentary vote. Maricarmen's eviction, on September 23, touched something deep in this country. It was the symbol that something has been breaking for a long time in the social contract: the distressing reality, for many young people, but also for wage earners and retirees, for whom renting is out of their options and ownership is an unattainable goal.

And that is why it was good news that Parliament was once and for all trying to respond to the unrest. Even if it had been hasty and after years of inaction. And although the measures under discussion were only a first step in the face of a colossal challenge that requires not less, but more politics and more consensus. More democracy. What is unacceptable is that in an emergency situation we return to the usual divisions and paralysis. There is still time to negotiate. It's never too late.