Deputy Mayors:We run housing policy for three European cities. Here’s what governments must do next

Alongside cities across the world, Barcelona, London and Paris are dealing with a devastating health crisis, affecting every aspect of our economy and society. The impact of Covid-19 is made all the more dangerous as it magnifies the pre-existing housing crisis.

In 2018 our cities rallied together at the United Nations to denounce the housing crisis affecting cities across the world. The Cities for Adequate Housing Declaration we all signed listed numerous factors that were putting at risk our goal of ensuring ‘equitable, inclusive, and just’ cities. These included a lack of national and state funding, market deregulation, the growing power of global corporations and increasing competition for scarce real estate. All these issues have been made worse by the coronavirus pandemic.

Ian Brossat is the Deputy Mayor for Housing at the Paris City Council in France. Lucía Martín is Housing Councilor at the Barcelona City Council in Spain. Tom Copley is the Deputy Mayor for Housing and Residential Development at the Greater London Authority in the UK.