Open clash between ministers Óscar Puente and Mónica García over Ada Colau and housing: "No one beats me when it comes to being a leftist and brave"

The housing crisis has caused a tense public confrontation between two government ministers. Mónica García and Óscar Puente clashed this Wednesday on 'X' after the Minister of Transport harshly responded to Ada Colau, who had accused the PSOE of "cowardice" for its housing policy.

Puente quickly took the discussion to a personal level and contrasted his management at the head of the Valladolid City Council with Colau's time in Barcelona. "I remunicipalized water in Valladolid while she got lost in excuses in Barcelona," he wrote. The socialist leader also expressed being "tired" of those who, according to him, intend to give him "lessons in leftism or courage". "Neither Colau nor anyone else can beat me when it comes to being a leftist and brave," he concluded.

The comparison chosen by Puente has revived an old dispute over municipal public services. Valladolid established the public company Aquavall in 2017 after the private concession expired. Colau also tried to move towards public water management in Barcelona, although that project encountered greater institutional complexity, opposition from Agbar, and various judicial and political obstacles. The minister has now presented these two experiences as proof of ideological firmness in the midst of the housing battle.

The Minister of Health and leader of Más Madrid, Mónica García, intervened to defend the former mayor and redirect the discussion towards the Executive's pending policies. "With all due respect, Óscar. It is not Ada who should be held accountable for the unbearable housing situation that we have been denouncing for years," responded the Minister of Health and leader of Más Madrid.

García has pointed to "some right-wing parties that have prevented any progress" and "a fierce speculative market" as responsible. She has also asked coalition partners to avoid confronting each other and to use their powers to act on what polls have indicated for months is one of the country's main problems. Her message has included a direct demand to the PSOE to bring the royal decree on rents, which Sumar has been demanding since before the summer, to the Council of Ministers.

Puente has rejected the reprimand and replied shortly after with another blunt message. "I don't ask anyone for explanations. And the one who is mistaken about the adversary is precisely her, not me," he wrote in reference to Colau. The response has for the moment closed an unusual exchange between two members of the Council of Ministers and has exposed the differences that run through the coalition over housing.

The clash comes as the decree promoted by Sumar remains pending. Among the negotiated measures are the extraordinary extension of rental contracts until June 2028, stricter regulation of seasonal and room rentals, and new obligations for tourist housing. Moncloa has so far halted its approval, considering that it lacks the necessary support in Congress, while its partners demand its approval and force parliamentary groups to take a stand.

The discussion also coincides with the eviction of Maricarmen, the 87-year-old woman expelled this Wednesday from the Madrid home where she had resided for seven decades. Her case has reactivated mobilizations for the right to housing and pressure to restore protection against evictions of vulnerable families. The decree remains off the agenda of the Council of Ministers, and the Government still has not secured a majority to validate it.