The poll we published in ARA this weekend dared to put numbers on the political reality, which, no matter how much scientific basis the work has, always ends up causing an endless discussion. Especially when there are still more than two years to go until the parliamentary elections, if the Illa government manages to complete the legislature, because the political, economic, and social situation is only getting more tangled.This is the first observation: the growing discontent would not be directed against the PSC, nor against Esquerra or Comuns, who support it, but would take the form of a historic shift of a large part of the country's electorate towards the far-right, curiously not large enough to force a change of government but sufficient to send Junts from second to fifth position.The growth of Alianza Catalana and Vox is more than probable (we'll see if in these proportions), and it's noticeable as soon as you step outside. The protest vote against everything, especially with the extraordinary increase in immigration that Catalonia has experienced, would take the form of the far-right, exactly as happens in all democracies. But the case of Catalonia, with its own political system and the strong influence of the Spanish political system, would present some elements to consider.The idea that ““és català tot aquell que viu i treballa a Catalunya (i ho vol ser)”” has been blown to pieces. A good part of the Catalanist voter doubts the strength that that powerful machine for “fer catalans”, which were the street, the school, the economy, the television, and the income difference with Spain, could now have, which without having its own state yielded extraordinary results. They doubt because countries with their own states like France and the United Kingdom have many problems, and because the mix of an immigrant influx, a digital cultural bubble, religious differences, and the marginalization of Catalan in schools and the legal inferiority of the language seems like a perfect storm for Catalan identity. And however aggressive Aliança Catalana's expressions towards Muslims may be, a sense of urgency prevails. In the case of Vox, the growth factors would be the Spanish nationalist reaction to immigration, to separatism, and to Pedro Sánchez's government, which is dragging on for them. Economic problems for many families, uncertainty for young people, an inaccessible housing market, bleak prospects in the labor market, artificial intelligence... The punishment vote, on the contrary, is served.It is not so strange that Orriols and Rufián are the best-rated politicians. To be rated, you first have to be known, and Rufián's star has not stopped growing, especially in Spain, and from this Spanish circuit, he grows in Catalonia. And Orriols, although less known, is on everyone's lips. However, personal rating and votes do not always go together. History is full of highly rated but poorly voted politicians.Good morning.

The socialist Government of Salvador Illa is ostentatiously stumbling over education. It is not new. The republican government of Aragonès, with counselor González-Cambray at the head of the department, also stumbled over it. But in reality, and this is the most serious thing, it is the whole country, the whole society, the future of our country, that is stumbling over education.Let's go step by step. Look at this page: Salvador Illa assumes the challenge of teachers. The president defends the agreement with CCOO and UGT and without USTEC. We have a labor dispute with the teachers that in the month and a half remaining of the course will provide us with 17 days of various strikes, about five per school center. So we have a Government that is playing hardball (negotiating stance) but which has made the mistake of overestimating the importance of a pact with unions that, in education, are not the majority. This, at a time when almost half of the aspiring teachers have failed the aptitude test. Only 54% of students have passed the exams to be able to take the selectivity exam and access education degrees. The good part is that we have tests that filter the most capable students. The bad part is that such generally low grades say something worrying about how competent students arrive at our universities.While we are still pondering this news, we turn the page and find that the industry warns that with the current training they cannot fill 15,000 positions a year. In other words, we have jobs, but we don't have prepared people. And Catalan industry has been like this for decades. Well, it is in the midst of all this that the Government wants to incorporate Mossos into schools, in plain clothes, to help teachers with security and mediation tasks. The debate in Parliament yesterday went like this: Salvador Illa: I accept that you don't see what this is about, I accept it. If I had seen what this is about, as president, I would say let's go ahead and do it throughout Catalonia. We are saying "let's do a proof of concept". This is what we are saying. And if the centers don't want to do it, it won't be done. What fear do they have of trying it?Mònica Sales : In schools, authority is needed, yes. That of the teachers, not that of the police. They already do a good job where it matters.Jéssica Albiach: These centers do not need police officers. What they need are psychologists, social educators, integrators, to lower the ratios, for the coordinators of coexistence and well-being to have exclusive dedication and specific training, and for the Plan against Child Poverty to work. That is what they need.Pilar Castillejo : You are assuming a mental framework and a way of doing things that is not characteristic of public school, but rather of the far right.Amidst a conflict with teachers, amidst very unpromising results from aspiring teachers or students in PISA tests, and from batches of graduates facing the labor needs of the industry, the Government opens the can of worms of having Mossos in schools and finds, of course, that teachers are asking for more specialists, not security personnel, no matter how much mediation they know how to do (which the Mossos do) and that it is done in other countries. It has been decades that something is not going well in the education of this country, which has to do with growing social complexity, the social valuation of the work of teachers, the constant changes in educational laws, the economic and material resources available, the unionization of their demands, the difficulty for dialogue in a world that feels unfairly criticized and is very susceptible to any external force. Finding trust and consensus to improve education is a matter of life or death for the country.Good morning.

Salvador Illa fails to calm the waters among the educational community. Unions have called for up to 17 days of strike over the next two months in protest of the agreement that the Government signed with CCOO and UGT, but not with USTEC. Salvador Illa's executive, however, despite the scale of the protest, does not plan to budge and has so far defended the pact signed a few months ago. In fact, it has invited the majority union, USTEC, to join it. "An agreement has been signed that is the best ever signed," stated the president of the Generalitat during Wednesday's control session in Parliament. These words are in addition to those spoken on Tuesday by the Government spokesperson, Sílvia Paneque, who made it clear that the Government will not amend the signed agreement, but will only put "arguments" on the table to convince USTEC, whom she also invited to join in "rolling out" this pact.

The far-right has been generating synergies with fake media for years to influence public opinion. But it is not an exclusive strategy of this political space, at least in Catalonia. A journalistic investigation confirms that Comuns and ERC manage and finance content platforms in web format and through social networks aimed at younger audiences. These are El Moment (ERC) and La Futura (Comuns), two digital channels that, in the eyes of the public, present themselves as media outlets, but are used as tools for disseminating the ideology of political parties. The PSC, for its part, has created Posem el focus, a podcast in which they do not explicitly state their political brand.

Uproar on the right and desolation on the left of the socialists, where the noisy leaderships of four days ago are getting lost in a general blurring. With canonical cases in both Catalan and Spanish politics, albeit with different forms and styles. Two examples of how stars that seemed to break barriers are fading: Pablo Iglesias, convinced that his presence was enough, did not want to understand that politics has a part of heavy and unsightly work behind the scenes, he was lazy about organic entanglements and got stuck when it came to moving from rhetoric to action. Result: he is a little more out of play every day. In the Catalan case, Ada Colau, who entered the mayorship with momentum, gradually blurred as if she couldn't find her place in the world of institutional politics and got lost in the transition from verbal illusions to practical concreteness. The drift of Podem and Comuns and the consequent fragmentation of their space, on a direct path to insolvency, force us to question the so-called far-left. And it's not just a problem for Catalonia or Spain.

Setback for ERC's membership in Igualada to the proposal of a coalition with the CUP and Comuns for next year's municipal elections. The assembly that the party held on Thursday night rejected the proposal by a narrow margin: 34 votes against, 31 in favor, and 2 abstentions, as reported by Nació Digital and confirmed by ARA. This Monday, the municipal groups of ERC, the CUP, and Comuns made a pre-agreement public to run jointly with the aim of ousting the current mayor from Junts per Igualada, Marc Castells. However, after the decision of ERC's membership, this pact now remains in limbo.

The proposal by ERC spokesperson Gabriel Rufián to form a broad left-wing and pro-independence front in the Spanish elections does not have the backing of the ERC leadership, which has distanced itself from it from the outset, and can only boast of having on its side to his comrade in arms, Joan TardàHowever, at the municipal level, their approach is viewed favorably by the Republican leadership, especially if the parties run under their electoral umbrella. This is what will happen in Igualada. The municipal groups of ERC, CUP, and Comuns announced a preliminary agreement this Monday to run jointly in the 2027 municipal elections.

The Catalan government needs a budget to function properly. Currently, it is still operating under the extended 2023 budget, which severely limits the administration's room for maneuver and leaves it short of approximately €1.5 billion. This amount remains unused because new expenses or projects cannot be included due to the lack of a budget. This sum is equivalent to the annual allocation of departments such as the Department of Business and Labor or the Department of Universities and Research. The truth is, citizens deserve a government that operates with a budget that reflects the country's current needs, not figures that were based on the reality of three years ago. Furthermore, having a budget would allow the government to make the most of the resources generated by record tax revenues thanks to economic growth. This includes both taxes in which Catalonia participates, such as personal income tax (IRPF), and those collected directly and transferred to the government (inheritance and property transfer taxes) under the current financing system.

Gerardo Pisarello begins his roadmap as mayor of Barcelona En Comú for 2027. After winning the primaries against Bob Pop, The now-Member of Parliament has announced that he will open a round of talks with left-wing forces in the city, including the PSC (Socialist Party of Catalonia), to try to build a "broad front" for the 2027 elections. At a press conference this Monday, he admitted that it is unlikely this understanding will materialize into a single electoral candidacy, but nevertheless, he expressed his support for exploring all options. He also intends to open conversations with social movements in the city. Once he has listened to them, he will make a proposal for a possible agreement for the municipal elections to "win a Barcelona for the social majority," at a time when the electoral cycle points to a rise for the right.

The debate about unity to the left of the PSOE has resurfaced strongly in recent days. Gabriel Rufián's call on Wednesday not to split the progressive vote The prospect of running together again in the upcoming general elections resonated this Saturday at another event in Madrid. Comunes, Más Madrid, Izquierda Unida, and Movimiento Sumar staged a demonstration that they will once again contest the elections scheduled for 2027, amid heightened anticipation. because of the Republican's proposalWhile these groups' approach differs from that of the ERC spokesperson in Congress, and there are no realistic expectations of bringing the pro-independence parties on board, the new electoral coalition—still in its very early stages—has emphasized the need to be as many actors as possible within a single candidacy. "We won't close the door to anyone," they stated. This appeal does reflect a desire—currently a pipe dream after the traumatic split at the beginning of the legislature—to attract Podemos. They have also included other parties with which they have previously joined forces, such as Compromís and Més per Mallorca. the Aragonese UnionOf these, only the Valencia fans attended the presentation, in which Yolanda Díaz was notably absent.

The debate surrounding broad coalitions has shaken the left since Gabriel Rufián brought it to the forefront. The proposal has engaged the Comuns, who are working in discreet meetings to revive their coalition to the left of the PSOE with Izquierda Unida, Más País, and Sumar, after Yolanda Díaz's party lost momentum following successive electoral defeats and the conflict declared against it by Podemos. With this new coalition, sources within Comuns assert that the Catalan party will have a "more prominent role" in the new project, which aims for greater "horizontal" collaboration among the member parties now that there is no longer a nationally representative force, as Podemos was until 2019 or Sumar at its inception. The ultimate goal remains to find a "winning formula" to re-establish the coalition government and avoid a PP-Vox coalition.

Barcelona en Comú has chosen its successor to Ada Colau for the 2027 elections. Member of Parliament Gerardo Pisarello defeated comedian and writer Bob Pop in the party's first primary and will be the candidate for the next municipal elections. Pisarello received 68.6% of the vote, while Bob Pop, who shook up BComú by unexpectedly stepping forward, convinced 27% of registered members who voted. A total of 9,000 people were eligible to participate in the process, and 1,525 cast ballots. There were 4.4% blank votes. The former deputy mayor in Colau's administration has teamed up with councilor Carol Recio, who will be number two on his list.

The republican front that Gabriel Rufián envisions as a way to stop the far right faces enormous resistance from the very parties that should be part of it. The primary opponent is, in fact, Esquerra Republicana. Since Wednesday's presentation in Madrid There is also a question that keeps echoing: if the fourteen left-wing parties Rufián mentions shouldn't compete against each other, who should run in each province? He didn't give a clear answer, but he did suggest that the brand should be decided based on electoral expectations in each specific territory. Probably, in the mind of the ERC spokesperson in Congress, his party would be the leading force of this left-wing front in Catalonia. But, of course, how would you determine who has the best prospects? Based on polls? Recent results? Each party's history?

An agreement has been reached between the Catalan government and the Comuns party for the 2026 budget. After 10 days of express negotiations, President Salvador Illa and the leader of Comuns in the Catalan Parliament, Jéssica Albiach, signed the pact in the Gothic gallery of the Palau de la Generalitat this Thursday, once the main obstacle was overcome. the prohibition of speculative housing purchaseswhich the PSC has finally accepted. Both parties have agreed to a reform of the urban planning law with the aim that, if it secures sufficient majorities, the ban on speculation by large property owners will come into effect before the summer.

A new step forward towards a budget agreement between Comuns and the Catalan Government. Jéssica Albiach's party has agreed with the executive to expand housing rental assistanceThe agreement includes increasing the family income limit for accessing the benefit to €36,279, up from the current €25,200, and raising the monthly rent limit to €855 (€1,135 in the case of Barcelona). Meanwhile, the Barcelona en Comú party has secured a commitment from the government to create annual vouchers worth €25 each for menstrual products and condoms for young people.

When the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, opened the door to banning speculative housing purchases in Catalonia, he did so with some caution: "It needs to be studied carefully and we need to proceed with certainty," he argued. when the CUP first raised the issue in ParliamentFinally, it was the Comuns party that secured a commitment from the government to sit down at a working group meeting with four experts to study the issue.

The Catalan government is determined to have a budget in place this year. The 2025 budget wasn't even presented: with Salvador Illa barely having taken his place in the executive council, the government had to get through its first year in office with supplementary credits due to the refusal of its investiture partners, especially ERC, to open budget negotiations. This year, the government has already begun talks with the Comuns, who consider the agreements they signed last year fulfilled and have already set their conditions for this year's budget. However, the other investiture partner, Esquerra Republicana (ERC), whose support is essential for the budget to be approved, has not yet entered the equation. The executive had planned to approve the draft bill next week in the executive council and have all the parliamentary procedures completed before the end of March, or at the latest, after Easter. In fact, according to sources consulted by ARA, the executive had warned the ministers to be prepared for this scenario.

While Gabriel Rufián embarks on a nearly solitary journey. To forge alliances with left-wing forces throughout the state, Sumar has taken a right-wing approach, anticipating the move of the Republican spokesperson, and has announced a new coalition with Comunes, Más Madrid, and Izquierda Unida for the upcoming general elections. The presentation of the new "common alliance" will take place on Saturday, February 21st, at the Círculo de Bellas Artes in Madrid. "A solid and trustworthy space over time that allows the transformative and plurinational left-wing movements of the State to come together," the four parties assert. In fact, the new agreement will be a kind of revalidation after the three years of experience of Sumar, the platform that Yolanda Díaz was solemnized in April 2023 and who ran in the June 23rd elections. Meanwhile, Rufián is sticking to his roadmap. The ERC spokesperson in Congress admits that, despite having "0% political support," he has a "much higher percentage of popular support" and defends his commitment to going beyond Catalonia's borders: "Representing someone from Algeciras doesn't make me any less Catalan or less pro-independence."

Comuns began budget negotiations with the Catalan government on Monday, aiming to reach an agreement as soon as possible. "The timetable for approving the budget is on the government's table," stressed David Cid, the party's spokesperson in Parliament and one of the negotiators, before the meeting. The meeting comes after the government fulfilled the condition set by Comuns for initiating talks. Start penalizing landlords for violating housing laws In Catalonia. Despite both sides' intention to get to work, the approval of the budget depends on the support of ERC, which, for now, is still waiting for an explicit commitment from the PSOE to allow Catalonia to collect 100% of the personal income tax (IRPF) as agreed.

Gerardo Pisarello (Tucumán, 1970) He is running in the Barcelona En Comú primaries to replace Ada Colau as mayoral candidate in 2027. He is currently a member of Congress and hopes to defeat his rival. Bob PopHe was the former mayor's right-hand man at City Hall between 2015 and 2019.