On 23 September 87-year-old María del Carmen Abascal was evicted in Madrid. Images of the elderly woman being led out of her home went around the country, and when she died in hospital on 7 October the protest became a mass movement. As early as 26 September young people pitched tents on the Puerta del Sol – the square that in 2011 was the symbol of the Indignados movement.

Scale

On 30 September there were more than 1,200 tents on the square, and similar camps sprang up in Barcelona, Málaga and Valencia. On 3 October there were protests in more than 50 cities – in Madrid the authorities counted 70,000 people, the organisers 500,000.

Clashes

The protest is mostly peaceful, but there have been incidents. In Valencia on 3 October demonstrators tried to force their way into a property investors' conference – 9 police officers were injured. In Barcelona 13 people were arrested on 5 October and 28 officers injured. Far-right groups attacked the camp twice (3 and 12 October).

Politics

On 30 September the government published Royal Decree-Law 26/2026 in the official gazette BOE (including a halt to evictions of people with no other home, restrictions on short-term lets and interest-free “Tu Casa” loans of up to €50,000). On 2 October Congress rejected the government’s housing decrees. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap election for 29 November. The CCOO and UGT unions called a general strike for 11 November – the first in 14 years.

TBT assessment

Spain shows that the housing crisis is now a problem for the whole of Europe – including the UK. On 11 November expect serious transport disruption across Spain.