Half of Spaniards outside Catalonia would accept result of agreed referendum, says poll

Some 57.3% of Spanish people outside Catalonia are against a self-determination referendum, with only 29.8% in favor of such a vote.

That figure contrasts with 70% of people in Catalonia who want to see a referendum, with 21.6% of the public against the option.

Despite opposition around Spain to a referendum, 48.2% of Spaniards would accept Catalonia's independence after such a vote, a figure that rises to 81.3% among Catalans.

The above figures are among some of those in a new poll published on Thursday by the Catalan government's Center for Opinion Studies (CEO).

Second CEO poll on independence in a month

The latest CEO poll follows another published earlier this month that suggested that support for independence in Catalonia had dropped slightly compared to a few months ago.

That poll found that 48.8% of Catalans were against Catalonia splitting from Spain when the survey was carried out in September, compared to 48.3% in July.

The percentage in favor of independence also fell in that period, from 44% to 41%, although the survey was done before the Catalan independence leaders were jailed in October. 

The CEO poll published on Thursday was based on a survey of 3,600 people around Spain, in the period between September 9 and October 7.

Resolving the conflict

The latest survey also tackled the issue of how people think the current conflict between Spain and Catalonia should be resolved.

Asked about what is the best way to deal with the current constitutional crisis, both Catalans and Spaniards outside Catalonia opted for dialogue.

Yet, there was a difference when it came to considering dialogue without conditions, with 42.4% of those surveyed in Catalonia in favor, and only 17.2% in the rest of Spain.

Meanwhile, 38.1% of Catalans believe dialogue held within the limits set by the Spanish Constitution is preferable, with 48.4% around Spain opting for the same.

As for those in favor of the Spanish authorities taking a hardline stance towards Catalonia, 26.9% in Spain believe this strategy is best, compared to only 4.2% of Catalans.

Other relevant figures of the poll include the citizens' view on some institutions. For instance, the monarchy gets a 2.2 out of 10 from Catalans, and 4.5 from the rest of Spaniards.