Spain's PSOE spokesperson's partner felled 700 trees for luxury development

PSOE spokesperson's partner felled 700 pines for luxury flats

A luxury housing development in Calafrugell (Lleida) built on land where 700 trees were felled. The company of the partner of Spain's PSOE spokesperson, Montse Mínguez, is named as responsible for the felling, which, according to circulating reports, would have altered the local micro-ecosystem. The story has hit the headlines not because of the felling itself, but because of what surrounds the businessman's wealth: two companies in Panama, more than 30 rental flats and even three simultaneous evictions. The contrast between the climate rhetoric and the management of his wealth is the core of the outrage.

Who the businessman is and what he is accused of

Sergi Vélez, partner of the Socialist spokesperson Montse Mínguez, is linked to Nest Capital Homes, a company through which he manages rentals. According to published reports, that company would have gone five years without paying Corporate Tax. No small detail: if Spain's tax agency (Hacienda) has not claimed it, someone will have to explain why. The felling of 700 trees is part of the construction of a luxury housing development, a project which, according to critics, would have altered the area's water cycle and worsened flooding and sewage problems.

Some argue the felling was legal and that the trees were not centuries-old oaks, but pines planted during the Franco era. The nuance does not defuse the criticism: 700 trees in a small area is a far-reaching intervention. The economic gain, on the other hand, is described as obscene and irreparable.

The double standard that fuels the anger

The argument repeated most is not ecological but about consistency. If a right-wing businessman fells 700 trees to build on, the media left turns him into a public enemy. If the partner of a Socialist spokesperson does it, the story vanishes from the front pages. The calculation is simple: two companies in Panama are not set up to pay more taxes in Spain, they are set up for the opposite. And meanwhile, Hacienda looks the other way.

The accusation of hypocrisy extends to the climate rhetoric. The very people who demand green sacrifices from the population are now defending a felling for property development. The conclusion many draw is that shop-window environmentalism serves to stop the rival, not to stop oneself.

The real impact on Calafrugell

The municipality has suffered flooding and sewage problems since the intervention. It is not a prediction: it is what those who know the area maintain. When a micro-ecosystem is altered, the effect is not measured in votes, it is measured in floods. The comparison going around is blunt: in such a limited space, felling 700 trees is equivalent to wiping out the vegetation of an entire national park.

The question left hanging is whether anyone will be held accountable. The answer, for now, is no. The matter remains open with no known court ruling.

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Note: the data on unpaid taxes and companies comes from published reports and not from a final conviction.