Catalan government to join legal appeals against constitutional challenges by Madrid

The Catalan executive is to join a number of ongoing legal cases currently in the Constitutional Court that are appealing challenges presented by the Spanish government to legislation passed in Catalonia. On Thursday, the government announced its intention to either enter an appearance or present allegations in 14 cases in which Madrid has challenged Catalonia’s reserved powers of legislating.

The measures include the law protecting the right to housing of people at risk of social exclusion, the setting up of the Catalan Agency of Social Protection, and recently challenged legislation to provide universal access to health services. Other contested measures include a retail law, climate change legislation regulating various environmental taxes, and the creation of a Catalan Agency for Cybersecurity.

Challenge to Article 155

As well as announcing that it will call on the court to lift the suspensions placed on all the above measures, the government also said it will enter an appearance in the appeals challenging the constitutionality of the application of Article 155. The Catalan Parliament and the Podem party have both already begun proceedings challenging the legality of the mechanism used by the Spanish government in October to impose direct rule on Catalonia.

The Parliament’s challenge to Article 155 is based on allegations that the Spanish government did not inform the Catalan authorities of its intentions to apply the article and suspend self-rule. Parliament’s case also alleges that in approving application of the article, the Senate did not follow the procedures laid down in the Constitution. Finally, it also alleges that the measures applied by the article were disproportionate and exceeded the powers envisaged in the Constitution, in particular the dismissal of the entire Catalan government.