Farmers agree with most political parties to review water restrictions and cut red tape

Farmers have reached an agreement with most political parties in the Catalan parliament to review water restrictions, cut red tape and speed up the payment of subsidies.

The agreement, reached with the Socialists, Esquerra, Junts, CUP, Comuns and Ciutadans, was sealed in a draft resolution that will be presented to the Parliament's board.

Farmers' representatives said they left the meeting with "positive feelings because they felt heard." However, they warned that the measures must be implemented "immediately", otherwise they will continue to protest until they are effective. 

"We can be content [with the agreement], although the fight doesn't end but changes, and victory doesn't exist if we don't write history," farmer Joan Rius said. 

Early Wednesday, thousands of farmers from all over Catalonia began marching with their tractors toward Barcelona, and by 3pm more than 2,000 tractors had arrived in the city, bringing it to a standstill. The Diagonal and Gran Via, two of the city's main avenues, were completely blocked by tractors. 

Farmers are protesting against rising prices, imports from non-EU countries, violations of the law on the food chain and excessive bureaucracy. After arriving in Barcelona, representatives of the farmers' unions met with Catalan president Pere Aragonès to air their grievances. 

After the meeting, the Minister of Climate Action, David Mascort, asked them to meet again in ten or fifteen days for a "specific analysis" of the sector. He said that "together we can do things better" and stressed the need to find "ways to simplify processes".

On Thursday night, most of the farmers left Barcelona after being warned by the authorities that they had to remove their tractors from the streets of the city by 6am on Thursday or face fines.

However, some chose to stay and sleep in their tractors, especially those who had traveled from further away. They said they were tired after two days of protests and felt it was not safe to go back so late. 

"We are responsible for our actions, and we are not staying here to protest, but to make sure we are safe. We will spend the night in the tractor," said one farmer.

Farmers from Central Catalonia and Girona, as well as those from Tarragona, have mostly decided to return, and most of those who stayed are from the Ebre region, in the very south of Catalonia.

In an effort to facilitate the farmers' return to their homes, the Catalan police Mossos d'Esquadra opened lanes from Diagonal and Gran Via to the main highways. 

In a post on the social network X, the Mossos said that police officers would accompany the tractors to ensure a safe journey home.