According to the Minister of Equality Beatriz Artolazabal, the new law has the goal of “protecting and guaranteeing the opening of new centres of worship” and offering legal coverage to religious plurality”.

Under the new legislation, each municipality is obliged to reserve space “for facilities of a religious nature in its urban planning plans, depending on the availability of land”, which means that many consistories have to modify their current urban plans to guarantee compliance with the law, writes Protestante Digital.

With the new legislation comes the implementation of a Basque Interreligious Council, made up of institutional, social and religious representatives who the Basque government will choose. The Council will be consultative and will ensure the development and implementation of the new legal framework. It can also make recommendations in enforcing the law.

Minister Artolazabal announced the new bill together with the publication of the Map of Religions in Basque Country, prepared by the Basque Immigration Observatory, Ikuspegi. The initiative collects data on the religious affiliation of the Basque population and the centres of worship existing in the community.

The Council’s final composition will be determined by a decree from the Basque government. As stated in the bill, “in the composition, a balanced representation of men and women with adequate training, competence and preparation will be promoted”, writes the Basque newspaper Diario Vasco.

The process of legislating religious diversity and the issue of centres of worship in the Basque Country dates back to 2011 when the government of Patxi López began to shape a first legal draft. Three versions later, the draft is ready for review.

Once the Governing Council has approved the text of the law, they will send the document to the Basque Parliament for processing and final approval.

The Basque country is located in the western Pyrenees, straddling the border between France and Spain on the coast of the Bay of Biscay. The Basque Country is an autonomous community within Spain and has its own police force. Around 69 per cent, more than 1,4 million, of Basques consider themselves Catholic.