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The President of the European Commission, José Manuel Durao Barroso, has responded to the letter sent in December by Artur Mas, the President of the Catalan Government. Mas had informed Barroso and the leaders of the EU Member States about Catalonia’s self-determination process and the recent agreement to organise a consultation vote on the 9^th of November. The Commission President “thanked” Mas for his letter and the information about “the latest political developments in Catalonia”. However, he rejected issuing further comments “on a question of internal organisation related to the constitutional arrangements in the Member States”. Furthermore, concerning Catalonia’s EU Membership, Barroso “recalls the position […] expressed on several occasions”.

The Catalan Government has welcomed the 138 proposals issued by a council of business associations, trade unions, academic experts and leading professionals, who form the so-called ‘Agreement for the Industry’ platform. The President of the Catalan Executive, Artur Mas, stated that those proposals are “a possible seed” for a broader agreement: a National Pact for the Industry that will define the priorities and main guidelines of Catalonia’s industrial policy for the next decade. The Catalan Minister for Business and Employment said that the 138 proposals coincide with “between 70 and 80%” of the Executive’s industrial policies. However he pointed out that the Government couldn’t bring all of them on board for budget or jurisdiction limitations.

The Catalan Government will file several formal demands for payment of the €2.02 billion the Spanish Government legally owes Catalonia from the 2008-2013 period. The money represents 1% of Catalonia’s GDP or 7% of the Catalan Government’s budget. According to the Statute of Autonomy, which was approved by the Spanish Parliament and came into force in 2006, the Spanish Government was obliged to invest a percentage equal to or higher than Catalonia’s share of Spain’s GDP between 2007 and 2013 in order to compensate for an historical lack of infrastructure investment. If it was not doing so, the Spanish Executive had to compensate Catalonia financially. The measure was adopted after exhaustive negotiations and was essential to the approval of this law by the Catalan people through a binding referendum. However, the Spanish Government never honoured it. Madrid compensated Catalonia for the lack of investment in 2007, but not for the remaining years.

The Camp Nou will host the first leg of the 1/8 round of the Copa del Rey. Leo Messi was named in the squad while Dani Alves, Marc Bartra and Xavi will be rested.Pinto will be in goal despite Valdés’ recovery and it’s probable that Puyol, Adriano and Sergi Roberto, all of whom were on the bench on Sunday, will be named in the starting eleven. Gerardo Martino, Barça’s Boss, said on Saturday that Leo Messi “has the eye of an assassin” since he returned from Argentina. The FC Barcelona forward, who missed the match against Elche, was given the medical all-clear to play on Tuesday and he could make an appearance this Wednesday evening (22.00 CET).

The Dalí Museums welcomed a total of 1,580,517 visitors in 2013, meaning an 8.42 % increase over 2012. This is the most important figure ever achieved by all three museums of the Dalí Foundation, located in north-eastern Catalonia: the Dalí Theatre-Museum in Figueres, the Gala-Dalí Castle in Púbol (near the Costa Brava) and the artist’s house in Port Lligat, Cadaqués (a Costa Brava town). The Dalí Foundation congratulated itself and insisted such record attendance would spread even further the artist’s legacy in Spain and across the world.

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, insisted this Tuesday he will organise a self-determination vote within the legal framework on the date agreed upon by four political groups 3 weeks ago. In a press conference following the first Cabinet Meeting of 2014, Mas ruled out the possibility of making changes in the government he chairs on the short-term, after speculations that the Catalan Left-Wing Independence Party (ERC) could sit in the Cabinet, formed by members from the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU) and independents. In addition, he identified “a cross slope” in the economic, social and political context, referring to a slight recovery, after 6 “terrible and fearsome years”.

For the first time since the beginning of the crisis, sales have already shown a “slight recovery” during Christmas, highlighted the President of Catalonia’s Confederation of Commerce (CCC), Miguel Ángel Fraile, who is “very optimistic” about the upcoming winter sales. Indeed, during the months of November and December, retail consumption have registered an increase of 2% and 3% compared to the previous year. It is expected that Catalans will spend a total of about €800 million during the winter sales, between 3% and 5% more than last year. These estimates by CCC also indicate that, on average, each citizen will spend €90 for the purchase of clothing items.

The Argentinean is set to play for the first time since he was injured against Betis at the Benito Villamarín Stadium 58 days ago. He has been named in the FC Barcelona squad to face Getafe at the Spanish Cup on Wednesday. On the 10^th of November, in the 19^th minute, Messi injured himself and had to be substituted. Up to that point he had scored 14 goals and 16 official matches. On the day after, tests confirm that he had torn a hamstring muscle and would be out for 6 to 8 weeks. On the 20^th of December, tests confirm the player had completed the clinical phase of his recovery and on the 2^nd January he trains with the squad again.

Barcelona’s Magic Fountain of Montjuïc will stop working from this Tuesday until the 6^th of February for maintenance reasons and also to improve its lighting and sound features. During this period of time, new colour LEDs will be installed along with a recirculation pump and two webcams while the sound system will be improved. The Magic Fountain, which attracts 2.5 million visitors each year, closes after several busy weeks, during which it offered Christmas carols and traditional music to tourists. It also played a part in New Year’s Eve festivities or the celebration of the Three Wise Men’s arrival in Barcelona.

The novel ‘La vida era eso’ by Carmen Amoraga has won the Nadal Award, in the 70^th anniversary of this literary prize given by Destino publishing house. Albert Villaró with his roman ‘Els ambaixadors’ was awarded the Josep Pla Prize for prose in Catalan, also given by Destino, on the same evening. Amoraga’s book tells the story of a woman who dives into the social networks after the death of her husband. The novel by Villaró invents an alternative outcome of the historical facts that happened in October 1934, when the Catalan President Lluís Companys proclaimed the “Catalan State of the Spanish Federal Republic”.

Catalonia has ended 2013 with 22,084 fewer unemployed people than in December 2012, with the total number amounting to 624,872 people, according to the Ministry of Employment and Social Security. The December figures also reveal that the total number of unemployed people has decreased between December 2012 and March 2013, a first since 2006. At monthly level, the number of unemployed people fell by 13,472 between November and December 2013. In the whole of Spain, the unemployment figures registered a drop, with 147,385 fewer people unemployed and the total number falling to 4,727, 814.

The political parties against the referendum on independence have criticised the Catalan Government’s decision to send a letter explaining the country’s political process to the 28 EU leaders and to the President of the European Commission. The Catalan socialists (PSC) think that abroad, the move will be seen as “exotic” and also shows “a complete lack of understanding of international relations”. For the Conservatives of the PP, the letter is “internal propaganda” only aimed at independence supporters and will have “zero international influence”. The spokesperson of Ciutadans (C’s) said the document was like a joke from “April Fool’s Day”. CiU, Mas’ party, regretted that the PSC, the PPC and C’s reacted with “insults and contempt” to each and every one of the Catalan President’s moves.

The Catalan President has sent a letter to the international leaders, detailing the agreement to hold a referendum in Catalonia, and urging them to encourage this “peaceful, democratic, transparent and democratic process”. In the letter, Mas explains that he is seeking to reach an agreement with the Spanish Government so the consultation can take place. He also states that there are five “legal and constitutional options” to authorize it.

The Catalan Government deficit amounted to 1.6% of the GDP between January and October, and consequently missed the 1.58% target imposed by the Spanish Government. Madrid was also not able to comply with the limit set for the central government, and had a deficit of 3.96% in November, higher than the 3.8% required for the whole year. The Spanish autonomous communities’ total deficit amounted to 1.12% of the GDP in October, which was in line with the yearly objectives, according to the Spanish Government. When considering the deficit of the autonomous communities, the Spanish state and the Social Security, it amounted to 4.87% of the GDP. The payments of the banking bail-out will also be included in this figure at the end of the year. Brussels had set a global limit of 6.5% for Spain in 2013.

The Catalan President, Artur Mas, urged Spain “to listen to the voice of the Catalan people” by allowing the referendum on independence to take place in 2014. In his New Year’s Eve Speech, Mas said that “there is nothing as democratic” as deciding the future of the country “in the ballot box”. “Solving the big issues in the polls should not cause any qualms nor fears, and it is obvious that our future and the relationship that we should have with Spain and Europe is a tremendously big issue”, he said in a speech broadcasted by Catalan Television on Monday.