Catalan Farmers Elect Their Representation, Spain Launches Storm Relief Funds

The latest data from the Catalan agricultural elections confirms the decisive victory of the Unió de Pagesos organization, which obtained support at the level of 47%. This vote, crucial for establishing the sector's representativeness to the regional authorities, took place in an atmosphere of growing economic and environmental challenges. The winning group announced an intensification of actions to protect agricultural land and the fight for fair product purchase prices. This result strengthens the union's position as the main partner in dialogue with the Generalitat de Catalunya in the upcoming term, which is particularly significant in light of planned structural reforms in the countryside. In parallel, the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, led by Luis Planas, in cooperation with the finance ministry of María Jesús Montero, presented details of emergency aid for the sector affected by recent storms. Particular attention was paid to the Castilla-La Mancha region, where crop losses are estimated at millions of euros. The regional authorities have already begun disbursing 8 million euros intended for 286 young people deciding to take up work in agriculture. This program aims to counteract the depopulation of rural areas and ensure generational replacement, which is a key challenge for the Spanish food economy. The government is also considering increasing by 10% the funds from the CAP dedicated specifically to young agricultural producers. The Spanish agricultural sector has been struggling for years with the problem of "empty Spain" (España vaciada), a progressive process of provinces depopulating in favor of large urban agglomerations, forcing the government to create special tax and grant incentives for young entrepreneurs.In another important thread concerning Spanish local administration, the Barcelona authorities announced a subsidy program for housing communities. The new regulations are intended to encourage residents to introduce bans on tourist rentals in building statutes. This is a response to the growing housing crisis in the capital of Catalonia, where an excessive number of tourist apartments drastically limits the availability of units for permanent residents. The city plans to subsidize the legal and administrative costs associated with changing community regulations, which is intended to be a real tool in the fight against gentrification in central districts. At the same time, warning signals are coming from Catalan fields, where the presence of an invasive species threatening crop stability has been detected, putting phytosanitary services on alert. Barcelona is one of the first European cities to adopt such a radical strategy to combat mass tourism, aiming to completely eliminate legal tourist apartments within the next few years.„Analizaremos todas las vías posibles, incluidos los fondos europeos, para compensar las pérdidas que el temporal ha causado a nuestros productores.” (We will analyze all possible avenues, including European funds, to compensate for the losses that the storm has caused to our producers.) — Luis Planas

Perspektywy mediów: Liberal media emphasize the fight against short-term rentals as a social success of the Barcelona local government in combating the housing crisis. Conservative press points out delays in compensation payments to farmers and excessive bureaucracy in granting EU funds.