“Of course, we'll do it”

The Spanish government is determined to use direct rule to put an end to the current language system in Catalonia, in place for 40 years following the restoration of democracy in the country and with the “consensus” of the education community, according to Catalonia’s heads of the public schools board.

After a cabinet meeting this Friday, the Spanish education minister made his intentions clear. “Of course, we’ll do it,” said Íñigo Méndez de Vigo, who is also spokesman for Mariano Rajoy’s government.  

According to him, Madrid will guarantee “the right of parents to choose the schooling language for their children,” but he did not clarify how.

One of the options Madrid is considering is giving all families the option of choosing Spanish as a working language on pre-enrolment forms for the next school year. Spain’s secretary of state for education, Marcial Marín, said on Thursday that the final decision will be taken in the coming weeks.

Since self-government was restored to Catalonia in the 1980s, Catalan has been the working language in schools, with students completing their education with a good command of both Catalan and Spanish. According to the Somescola platform, which includes around 50 civic organizations in the sector, the current policy ensures "social cohesion" and it is "internationally recognized."