President Torra says Catalan government does not back ERC-Socialist deal

Catalan president Quim Torra has told vice president Pere Aragonès that the Catalan government does not back Esquerra's deal with the Socialists forged in an attempt to garner support for Pedro Sánchez's presidential bid in congress.

This announcement comes after Aragonès urged Torra to "defend self-determination together" with his party at the negotiating table to be established as part of the ERC-Socialist deal, if passed, as well as during consultations with the Catalan public on any agreements reached between both parties.

According to Torra, who met with Aragonès on Thursday at the Plaça Sant Jaume government headquarters, as Catalan president he must be the one to validate any agreement between the Catalan and the Spanish governments.

The Catalan president stated, furthermore, that any deal made with the Spanish government should clearly allow for an independence vote, and he insisted that he would not cease to call for self-determination, an end to "repression" and an amnesty for the imprisoned and exiled independence leaders.