batet

Spanish Government reiterates its wish for “dialogue”, but closes door to a referendum that would “liquidate the nation”

November 30, 2016 07:44 PM | ACN

The Spanish Government is willing to “dialogue” with the Catalan Government, but has closed the door to a self-determination referendum, because it “liquidates the essence of the [Spanish] nation”, said the Spanish Vice President, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, this Wednesday. Requested by the Catalan Socialist MP Meritxell Batet and the spokesman of the Spanish alternative left party Podemos, Iñigo Errejón, to permit reform of the Constitution in order to respond to Catalonia’s independence movement, the politician stated that to do so “requires consensus on the point of departure and arrival”. Furthermore, she stressed the necessity to achieve “an agreement on the diagnosis of the problems and the solutions”, a goal that currently is not possible given the disagreement seen in the Spanish Parliament, she added.

PSOE removes Catalan Socialist Meritxell Batet from party board for rejecting Rajoy investiture

November 18, 2016 03:23 PM | ACN

The Catalan Socialist Meritxell Batet will no longer be part of the PSOE Board in the Spanish Parliament. The measure was announced on Thursday by the spokesman of the PSOE interim leadership, Mario Jiménez, and came after theparty held a two-hour meeting to decide the measures against the 15 MPs, including the seven members of the PSC, that broke voting discipline and rejected Rajoy’s investiture. Batet’s post as Deputy Secretary General will remain unoccupied until negotiations between the Catalan and the Spanish socialist branches “come to an end”, Jiménez said. After the announcement, Batet stated that she “accepts and respects” the decision, despite not sharing it, and that she would have preferred for the issue not to have been tackled “in this way”.

Party Review – PSC: “Pro-independence process goes nowhere”

June 22, 2016 07:08 PM | ACN

The Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) obtained 7 MPs in the last Spanish Elections, half of what they obtained in 2011. Although their partner in Spain, the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE) was the second force in the 350-seat Spanish Parliament, PSC suffered a huge decline in Catalonia, mainly due to its refusal to hold a referendum on independence and also because it is regarded as a party from the ‘establishment’ in comparison to new forces such as Spanish Unionist ‘Ciutadans’ and Alternative Left ‘Podemos’. To try to reverse this negative trend, PSC decided to change its lead candidate for the upcoming Spanish Elections, to be held on the 26th of June. Former Spanish Minister for Defence, Carme Chacón, was replaced by Meritxell Batet, who has insisted on reforming the Spanish Constitution in order to solve the political problem between Catalonia and Spain.