Barcelona’s left-wing mayor Ada Colau has ordered the expropriation of an ‘empty’ flat owned by a bank, in a first for the city facing a shortage of homes.

Ms Colau, a former housing campaigner who started her second term as mayor last week, put to use a law passed by the Catalan parliament in 2016.

Under its terms local authorities can claim homes owned by companies that have many properties in their portfolios, if they are left vacant for two years or more.

The homes can remain under public control for four to ten years.

The law was suspended by Spain’s constitutional court after a challenge by the government of former Conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, but last year the court ruled it in order.

“This empty flat will now form part of the municipal housing stock for 10 years,” said Lucía Martín, Barcelona’s councillor in charge of housing.

Ms Martín added that expropriation orders were being prepared for seven other properties belonging to banks.

The council says it discovered the apartment had been empty for two years through the residency register and a lack of utility payments.

The law can only be applied to properties in areas with a “strong residential demand”, as in the Besòs district, where the flat belonging to Spain’s BBVA bank is located.