From the increase in police presence to the launch of an anti-occupation police unit, the consistories focus on local security
In the second metropolitan crown, the debate and security measures have also gained presence during the last months of the year
If there is a field of public policies that has been the protagonist of the local agendas of the cities of the Barcelona metropolitan area during the last months, that is the one of the security.
Half a year after municipal elections from next May 2023, local governments have proceeded to promote various measures, from the increase in police presence to the launch of an anti-occupation police unit, a cocktail seasoned with the initiative of the Barcelona Metropolitan Area (AMB) to launch a “comprehensive metropolitan security system”.
Furthermore, the debate has not been limited to the borders of the 36 municipalities that make up the AMB, but has also been generated in the second metropolitan area.
In fact, in October 2022, the mayoress of Sabadell, martha farresand the mayors of Martorell and Mataró, Xavier Fonollosa Y David Boatpresident, vice president and secretary of the Arc Metropolitanarespectively, traveled to Madrid to ask the different political parties, starting with those of the coalition government, for support to modify the law and make it possible for occupied flats to be vacated within 48 hours.
This request was shared by nine mayors of the cities that make up the Arc Metropolità -Sabadell, Terrassa, Rubí, Mataró, Martorell, Vilanova i la Geltrú, Granollers, Mollet del Vallès and Vilafranca del Penedès-, of all political colors, since they are represented among them PSC, CKD, together Y All for Terrassa-.
local measures
One of the most paradigmatic cases of this trend was carried out by Badalona in the middle of last September. Both the mayor of Badalona, Ruben Guijarro (PSC), as the leader of the opposition in the consistory, Xavier Garcia Albiol (PP), presented less than 24 hours apart two proposals for “fight against the occupations & rdquor; in the city.
Thus, if on Tuesday Guijarro announced that the Badalona Urban Guard would have a specific unit to fight against the occupations, on Wednesday it was the turn of Albiol, who asserted that, if he governs Badalona in 2023, he will create an “anti-occupation council”.
Precisely, this new unit, called house, began operating a little over a week ago with the aim of “preventing, detecting and acting in cases of illegal occupation of real estate”, according to the City Council itself. Also recently, Badalona has announced that will incorporate a team of night watchmen -night civic agents- with the intention of reinforcing night surveillance.
That of the night watchmen is a measure that follows the trail already marked by other metropolitan cities such as Santa Coloma de Gramenet or Cornellà de Llobregatthat They already work with their respective teams of night civic agentswhich coordinate with Mossos and the respective local police, but do not have their own security powers.
Precisely Santa Coloma, the city that led the return of the night watchmen to “improve the perception of security”, is one of the municipalities that has given security the most prominence on its agenda.
Also a little over a week ago, its mayoress, the socialist Nuria Parlonannounced a relaunch of its “proximity police”an operation by the Colombian Police that emphasizes prevention and consists of pairs of agents on foot around the city that allow citizens closer access.
In this case, the novelty of the project is that from now on the city will have a Police Information Point. Thus, on a rotating basis, a tent will be installed in the neighborhoods and districts of the city where Local Police personnel “will offer information and safety advice”, according to what was indicated by the consistory itself.
Local and metropolitan plans
At the beginning of November, the mayoress of L’Hospitalet de Llobregat, Nuria Marin (PSC), reported on a new Security plan in the neighborhood Florida of the great Catalan city.
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Marín and the interior minister, Joan Ignasi Elena (ERC), then announced “greater police presence” of both the Mossos and the Urban Guard in Florida – “especially in the Blocs area” – without specifying the additional number of troops. The Plan has been running since November 14 and “does not have a final date scheduled.”
All this network of local policies has as a background the will of the WBA to implant a metropolitan Security System, that although it seems to leave behind the previously speculated idea of a possible metropolitan policedoes foresee, for the moment as a political proposal –not coordinated with Interior or Mossos– to implement in the next mandate, the use of video surveillance and a mobile application that takes as a reference the ‘app’ M7already used by some large metropolitan municipalities as L’Hospitalet de Llobregat or Santa Coloma de Gramenet.