Spain affirms stance against referendum following Catalan president's committee launch

The Spanish government reaffirmed its stance on Wednesday against a Catalan independence referendum following the launch of a Quebec-Style Clarity Act committee by president Pere Aragonès.

Spain's finance minister María Jesús Montero said that while Socialist PM Pedro Sánchez leads the government, "there will not be any self-determination referendum in Catalonia."

She added that the Catalan government is "well aware" that the Spanish cabinet will not accept the Clarity Act proposal as "it goes against the Constitution." 

"There are no legal frameworks and we have always said that any measure, deal, or proposal made by the Catalan government should strictly follow the Constitution," she told the media.

Montero believes that "politics are supposed to give useful solutions to people and not to tackle topics that are out of legality and are aimed at distracting from what is most important."

Aragonés maintains "outstretched hand"

Catalan president Pere Aragonès responded on Wednesday, saying he still has a "outstretched hand" for the Spanish government to negotiate "a democratic solution." 

"All negotiations start with a no and it's the first step to start talking," he said at a media briefing at a drinking water treatment plant. 

Aragonès warned the Spanish government that it must "respond" to requests for a referendum: "Pretending that problems do not exist does not make them go away." 

 He reiterated his commitment to "a democratic solution in which the majority" of Catalans "feel represented." 

"No one should be afraid to talk in order to reach agreements."  

Quebec-style Clarity Act 

Aragonès, who first proposed the Quebec-style Clarity Act as a means of negotiating an independence referendum with Spain late last September, has already commissioned a first report from the group and called a meeting with all parties in June, following the local elections in May, to discuss its findings. 

The committee headed by Pompeu Fabra University professor Marc Sanjaume, who Catalan News last interviewed in 2021, will also be made up of other political scientists and legal experts from Catalan universities. 

The Esquerra Republicana pro-independence minority cabinet wants other parties to share their proposals and objections before the committee opens the debate to civil society groups.

Once a final report is produced, which Aragonès hopes will legitimize and strengthen his quest for independence, the Catalan government will approve a Quebec-style Clarity Act. This will be brought to the so-called 'dialogue table' discussions with the Spanish government on the issue of Catalan independence. 

Despite Aragonès' proposal, opposition parties remain unconvinced.