Andorra Síndic Praises Housing, Abortion, EU Progress in Ninth Legislature
In a Meritxell Day address, Síndic General Carles Ensenyat lauds the ninth legislature for laying groundwork on key issues. He draws parallels to past modernisations like the sanctuary rebuild, stressing long-term bases despite challenges.
Key Points
- Carles Ensenyat highlights foundational advances in housing reforms amid ongoing crisis.
- Commends sustainable growth efforts balancing economy, society, and controlled development.
- Describes abortion decriminalisation path as long but delivering notable progress.
- Notes EU association builds on 15-20 years of growing relations despite debates.
Andorra's Síndic General Carles Ensenyat has described the ninth legislature's progress on housing, sustainable growth, abortion decriminalisation and EU association as foundational efforts for the country's future.
In his address on the Day of Meritxell, marking 50 years since the new Meritxell Sanctuary's inauguration, Ensenyat positioned these issues as the legislature's defining challenges. He drew on the sanctuary's rapid reconstruction after its 1972 fire and the 1980s reforms leading to the 1993 constitution to illustrate Andorra's tradition of modernisation while retaining its identity.
Ensenyat stressed that the past four years have established bases for long-term priorities beyond any single term. On housing, he recognised its enduring urgency into 2027 but commended the extensive legislative proposals from all parliamentary groups and government measures, urging future evaluations to highlight these steps amid ongoing difficulties.
For sustainable growth, he expressed optimism that future balances between economic, social progress and controlled development would build directly on the Consell General, government and communes' current contributions.
The Síndic called the path to decriminalising abortion under specific conditions—while safeguarding Andorra's parliamentary co-principality—"long and sinuous," not always aligning with a hyper-connected society's pace. He urged contextualising recent advances against progress from four or ten years prior, noting the final outcome would reflect Andorra's institutional uniqueness. Even so, it would deliver "very notable progress" and another instance of historical equilibrium.
On the EU association agreement, Ensenyat acknowledged the intense, often opposing debates since negotiations ended, alongside parliament and society's varied positions. He emphasised, however, that Andorra-EU relations have grown over 15-20 years through shared knowledge and trust, transcending the agreement itself.
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