Barcelona’s mayor elect faces opposition from ‘economic forces’
Barcelona’s mayor-in-waiting Adu Colau, who has questioned the city's continued hosting of the Mobile World Congress, is under fire from business officials who fear her anti-capitalist agenda could damage the financial performance of one of Spain’s most economically fervent regions.
The leftist activist is set to take on the role next month (June 13) after she won Barcelona’s mayoral election earlier this month with 25 per cent of the vote. It was enough to narrowly secure her the role with 11 seats though her Bercelona en Comu party needs to form a coalition with other parties for a majority.
The tenuous predicament has left Colau open to challenges for the mayor role ahead of her being sworn in. Outgoing mayor Xavuer Trias said he would form a rival coalition with socialists and centre-right parties to prevent her assuming power, a challenge he claimed to have stemmed from “economic forces”.
Colau’s anti-austerity stance is said to have alarmed the business world with some executives concerned that proposals such as pulling Barcelona’s funding of the Formula One Spanish Grand Prix and curbing the number of new luxury hotels that are built could have a negative impact. The mayor elect has also questioned Barcelona’s continued hosting of the Mobile World Congress event. She has previously said that it should provide “social benefits” not just benefit the “few”.