The very recent times in which the relationship between Barcelona City Council and the economic fabric was acrimonious seem to have passed into history. Jaume Collboni showed yesterday in a conference that he gave at the Cercle d’Economia the determination to give an impetus to public-private collaboration that contributes to the fact that the city takes a leap. “Generate trust, reduce tension, try to find agreements, solve citizens’ problems”, he detailed. In this sense, the socialist mayor urged a “new commitment” that would make it possible.
Collboni’s invitation is part of the dialogue that he wants to characterize his government and that he intends to practice with economic and social agents. “We offer trust, solutions without reproaches, without making confrontation a way of doing politics”, he emphasized, while trying, without saying it, to mark distances with the predecessor, Ada Colau. So, he announced that on November 22 he will meet with the unions UGT and CC.OO. and the employers’ associations Foment del Treball and Pimec.
A few days before he turns 100 at the head of the City Council, Collboni reviewed at the conference, attended by, among others, company managers and two former mayors, Narcís Serra and Xavier Trias, some of the actions that has boosted these three months. It started with the tidiness of the public space and security. “It’s not the sexiest policy to start a term – he acknowledged – but it’s basic”. The other key issue, the city’s main problem in his opinion, is housing, which has “prices that drive many citizens away”. In this area, he highlighted the offer of 27 lots to the Generalitat to build more than 1,600 homes for affordable rent. He also reiterated the intention to make the 30% reserve more flexible to achieve greater involvement of the private sector.
Recovering the pride of the city, the self-esteem of the people of Barcelona, ??is another objective of Collboni, which depends to a large extent, in his opinion, on hosting big events. He mentioned as examples the America’s Cup, the World Capital of Architecture or the acquisition of new halls for the Fair.
With the investiture of the new President of the Central Government pending, Collboni warned that “Barcelona will not be subject to any political situation”. The vision of his team, he added, “is medium and long term, for 2030 and 2050”. In this sense, he added, “I want us to once again have projects, horizons, and that they are shared by all citizens”.
Collboni’s economic guide, the Barcelona Green Deal, was already launched during his time as deputy mayor. “Everything that worked in the previous term, we will keep,” he announced. And he detailed the strategic areas of action: digital, industry 4.0, health and biotechnology, creative, proximity economy, visitor, green, blue and circular. This policy, he recalled, “already has results”. Two examples: the low unemployment rate, of 5.7%, which makes it “the big Spanish city with the least unemployment” in Spain. In this area, he recalled that Madrid is at 7.9%.
“We must go to all of them and not miss any opportunity” to grow the economy in strategic sectors, the mayor emphasized. A priority is to “turn it into one of the European capitals of the chip” and, therefore, “contribute to maintaining the technological sovereignty” of the continent.
The debate about the airport “is poorly conceived”, according to Collboni, because it must start from “which economic model we want” and “not from the instrument”. If it aims to be “an international city, with a diversified economy, that captures talent”, he defended “that it is interconnected with the centers of production and knowledge, which are in Boston, Shanghai, Toronto or Bangalore”.
