From the referendum to funding: the independence movement forces Salvador Illa to take a stand

BarcelonaThe independence movement no longer enjoys a majority in the Parliament, but it is once again gaining ground in the general policy debate. The Brussels agreement reached between Junts and the PSOE for Pedro Sánchez's investiture is the cornerstone of the resolution proposals from Carles Puigdemont's party. Thus, Junts will seek to have the PSC position itself in Parliament in favor of negotiating a referendum within the framework of the Swiss roundtable. This is stated in one of the points of the resolution proposals that the parliamentary group will vote on this Thursday, in which they seek to have Prime Minister Salvador Illa "align" with the Brussels agreement with the PSOE. However, that agreement stipulated that Junts would bring the negotiation of a referendum to the Swiss negotiating table, but now the judiciary members are going a step further and maintain that "the holding of a self-determination referendum will be raised within the negotiation space provided for this purpose." Isla, who has repeatedly positioned himself against the referendum, will have to make a statement.

For its part, ERC advocates addressing the "political conflict" between Spain and Catalonia with a "great understanding of the country" that is "endorsed by the citizens of Catalonia." In this way, the Republicans avoid directly using the term referendum, which they did include in their proposals last year. The CUP does explicitly support the exercise of self-determination. Faced with "the lack of political will to resolve the political conflict through institutional means," the CUP members urge the exercise of "the right to self-determination through social mobilization, continuing the path opened by the October 1 referendum."

The commitment to financing

Beyond the national horizon, the new financing model that the ERC agreed upon with the PSC to inaugurate Illa is now being presented to the Parliament. The Socialists are reviving the investiture agreement signed with Esquerra, which is committed to promoting the new singular financing model and includes ordinality, although the PSOE has not adopted it. ERC is also demanding this new financing system and is asking the Parliament to request that Congress approve the law that the Republicans introduced alone in the Spanish lower house to enable the Generalitat to collect personal income tax—and which does not have the support of the PSOE—be passed before the end of the year. The Catalan Socialists also include in one of their resolution proposals "promoting the pertinent legislative reforms" to legally protect the Catalan Tax Agency. They distance themselves from it. de facto Junts, wary of this new model because it considers it a one-size-fits-all, defends the economic agreement while calling for a reduction in taxes such as personal income tax and a tax cut on inheritance tax. Vox, on the other hand, calls for "suspending negotiations" for one-off financing.

The immigration debate

The immigration debate will also once again be a major issue in the Catalan parliament, and not just because of the presence of Vox and Aliança. In its electoral competition with Silvia Orriols's party, Junts will demand support for the full delegation of immigration powers following Podemos' veto and will establish a minimum of 10 years of municipal registration in order to access social housing. The PP is also toughening its stance, in this case due to its dispute with Vox, and is asking the Spanish government to implement agreements with third countries to "accelerate the return" to their countries of origin of unaccompanied minors who have committed crimes or who have demonstrated "a lack of willingness to integrate" in Catalonia. Vox proposes halting the "migratory invasion" and banning the veil and Islamic celebrations in public spaces, as well as conducting a study on the cost of illegal immigration.

The macro-projects

Parliament will also have to rule on several major projects, such as the B-40, the Hard Rock Stadium, and the Ryder Cup, so that the PP and the CUP can include them in their proposals. And its deputies will also have to weigh in on whether they want to lower their salaries. The CUP is bringing to the plenary session a proposal to reduce the salaries of elected officials by at least 14% and to stop them from receiving a fixed allowance for expenses and travel. The CUP also demands that large property owners, such as the Comuneros (Commons) from purchasing homes, and wants the Government to study and implement the "necessary legal changes" to prohibit speculative home purchases. The Alliance proposes reviewing the criteria for allocating public housing to incorporate, as a valuable element, "the degree of ties" of applicants. The Alliance also urges the Government to "reopen" the Generalitat office in Tel Aviv to reestablish institutional and economic relations with Israel.