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The Spanish Deputy Prime Minister, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, has asked the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, to abandon his demands to organise a self-determination vote in order to start a dialogue. She was answering Mas' request to PM Mariano Rajoy "to set a day and time" to start talking. Sáenz de Santamaría stated "there was already a day and a time, which was last Tuesday at 4 pm", when the Spanish Parliament rejected the Catalan Parliament's petition to exceptionally transfer the power to organise a non-binding referendum in Catalonia. In addition, the Spanish Deputy Prime Minister referred to Mas's statement that, if a referendum or a consultation vote on Catalonia's independence from Spain is banned, he might call for plebiscite elections. De Santamaría warned that "a referendum cannot be held whatever the formula". On top of this, she rejected a Constitution reform once again "because there is no consensus".

The Israeli airline Arkia will offer a total of 20 flights during the summer and 20 more during the winter between Tel Aviv and the Lleida-Alguaire Airport. The new connection will start on the 27^th of June and will have a capacity of 110 passengers per flight. Israeli tourists will be better connected to Western Catalonia and the Pyrenees, which host a large range of ski resorts, adventure sports opportunities, impressive mountain landscapes and unique Romanesque art. In addition, the Israeli Ambassador recently unveiled a route following the mountain paths used by thousands of Jews who crossed the Pyrenees to escape Nazi persecution. Lleida's Pyrenean landscape consists of high peaks, lakes and mountain forests, including the National Park of Aigüestortes.

The day after the Spanish Parliament's debate about Catalonia's self-determination vote, the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, asked the Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, to "set a day and a time" to start talking about the current political situation. Yesterday Catalan representatives explicitly asked for the same thing, stressing their offer "to talk about everything", including the organisation of a self-determination vote. In addition, in the Government control session at the Catalan Parliament, Mas urged the People's Party (PP) – which runs the Spanish Executive – to present the Constitutional reform Rajoy referred to during Wednesday's debate. The PP answered Mas that it is up to him to present such a reform since he is the one who wants to change the current legal framework.

On Tuesday evening the Spanish Parliament rejected a motion to transfer to the Catalan Government the power to organise a specific non-binding self-determination referendum, using Article 150.2 of the Constitution. 86% of all Spanish MPs rejected a motion presented by the Catalan Parliament to this effect, which was backed by some two-thirds of Barcelona’s Chamber. The Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy rejected the petition using his own interpretation of the Constitution, stating that Catalans could not possibly hold a vote on this issue within the current legal framework and therefore he could not authorise it. However, he pointed out that the Constitution could be reformed, although at the same time he has been blocking this way in recent years and has refused to talk about it. The Catalan representatives argued that allowing a self-determination vote was only a matter of political will.

The Catalan Parliament is formally requesting the Spanish authorities to transfer the power to organise referendums to the Catalan Government, using Article 150.2 of the Constitution in order to organise an agreed self-determination vote in Catalonia. The Spanish Parliament, where the governing People's Party (PP) holds an absolute majority, will reject the petition on Tuesday, closing the door to one of the current legal paths to hold such a vote. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (PP) and the leader of the Spanish Socialist Party (PSOE), Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba, are expected to unite to reject the petition, which is backed by almost two thirds of the Catalan Parliament and some 75% of the Catalan population. Three Catalan MPs will emphasise that authorising a self-determination vote is not a legal problem but a matter of political will. However, Rajoy will insist on the "indissoluble unity of the Spanish nation" and is likely forget that Spain is "formed by nationalities and regions", as stated in the Constitution.

Víctor Grífols, the President and part owner of the Catalan pharmaceutical company Grífols – which is one of the world leaders for blood-derivate products – has advised the President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas to "go ahead" and "do not flinch", indirectly referring to Catalonia's self-determination process. At a public event to unveil the enlargement of the multinational's campus in Parets del Vallès (Greater Barcelona), Víctor Grífols stated: "When an organization – whatever its nature – has a clear goal to reach, a clear idea of which is the direction to follow in the future, it does not have to fear criticism questioning its strategy or raison d’être". The pharmaceutical firm has built a new plasma fractioning plant, which cost €20 million and will hire 70 new workers.

Spain's Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, did not want to disclose whether he will participate in the Spanish Parliament's debate on transferring referendum powers to the Catalan Government using Article 150.2 of the Constitution. The debate is scheduled for the 8^th of April following a formal petition of the Catalan Parliament, approved with 87 "yes" votes, 43 negative ballots and 3 abstentions. However, Rajoy insisted that the People's Party – which runs the Spanish Government and holds an absolute majority in the Parliament – will defend "common sense". "It is not important who will talk", "but the message and our stance is very clear: [Catalonia's self-determination] aims to deny all Spaniards such a fundamental right as deciding how they want their country to be like", he said. Then he added that "Spain is the oldest nation in Europe" and that "the Catalan people and the rest of Spaniards have mixed themselves and share the same blood".

More than 300 innovations from the agri-food industry are presented between the 31^st of March and the 3^rd of April in Alimentaria, one of the main trade fairs for this sector in Europe. The 20^th edition of this event, which takes place in the Catalan capital every two years, focuses on innovation and internationalisation. In fact, 40,000 visitors, 30% of the total 140,000 visitors, are foreigners. In addition, as explained by the Director General of Alimentaria, Antoni Valls, this year the organisers have managed to assemble 600 of the world's main international buyers, which is double the number at the previous fair in 2012. These top buyers have already arrived for 8,000 pre-scheduled business meetings with the 3,800 exhibiting companies at the fair, which occupies 94,500 square metres of Fira de Barcelona's Gran Via venue.

The legal services of the Catalan Government have issued a report analysing last week's Constitutional Court judgement on the Catalan Parliament's Declaration of Sovereignty. The Constitutional Court rejected the idea that Catalonia was a "sovereign political and legal entity", but at the same time it recognised that "Catalan citizens' right to decide" fits into the Constitution. The Court rejected "the right to self-determination" but it recognised self-determination as a legitimate and therefore constitutional "political aspiration". On top of this, the Court urged the political powers to talk and find agreements, and it pointed out that all the parts of the current Constitution can be reformed. As far as the Catalan Government is concerned, the Court is backing a vote to find out the opinion of Catalan citizens as long as it is only a consultation and not a binding self-determination referendum.

Catalan Government announced its provisional budget deficit for 2013, equivalent to 1.97% of Catalonia’s GDP. The figure is above the 1.58% deficit target imposed by the Spanish Government, although it represents a reduction of €526 million on the 2012 results. In fact, the Spanish Government has praised Catalonia’s “significant” deficit reduction. The Catalan Finance Minister, Andreu Mas-Colell, was “satisfied” with the deficit obtained in 2013, since he considers the fiscal consolidation effort imposed on the Autonomous Communities, which exclusively manage around 35% of Spain’s total public spending, “out of proportion”. “It is about time that the Central administration [Spanish Government] gets slimmer”, said Mas-Colell. The Spanish Government, responsible for 50% of Spain’s total public spending, posted a 4.33% deficit, instead of the 3.8% it had granted itself.

The Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU) – which runs the Catalan Government – and the opposition Catalan Socialist Party (PSC) - which does not support the self-determination vote – have reached an agreement on the new legal framework to develop the macro-resort BCN World. This project, promoted by Veremonte and located in Salou (Costa Daurada), has already announced some of its international partners, but in order to attract the rest of the investors needed and start construction, the legal framework on gambling and the area’s town planning had to be upgraded. After months of talks, the CiU has finally closed a deal with the PSC, instead of doing it with the Left Wing Catalan Independence Party (ERC), with whom it is promoting the self-determination agenda. The $6-billion BCN World will create some 17,000 jobs and will have mega-casinos, hotels, luxury shops, conference centres and beach clubs, among other things.

The Catalan economy is more open than ever and attracts record levels of foreign investment, according to new data published on Thursday by the Catalan Minister for Business and Jobs, Felip Puig. The minister celebrated the fact that for the second year in a row, the prestigious ‘Financial Times’ newspaper ranked Catalonia first region in continental Europe in foreign investment and job creation. Catalonia attracted up to 91 new business projects with an estimated investment of almost 3,000 million dollars (around 2,257 million euros) and the creation of 7,427 jobs. Gross foreign investment figures from the Spanish government put the figure at 3,500 million euros. Exports in 2013 were at record levels, and generated 58,359 million euros. There are now more than 49,000 companies selling abroad in Catalonia, a 6.8% increase in comparison to 2012.

The President of the Catalan Government, Artur Mas, stated on Wednesday that the self-determination process will go on despite the Constitutional Court’s ruling against the 'Declaration of Sovereignty' the day before. Mas insisted that the process "continues", since it is based on its democratic legitimacy, it adheres to its peaceful nature and will use all the existing legal frameworks. On the same day, the Catalan Vice President, Joana Ortega, sent a letter to all the Mayors in Catalonia to ask for their "compromise and co-operation" in organising a self-determination vote. Besides, the Catalan Parliament has elected the 3 MPs who will go to Madrid and ask for the transfer of referendum powers using Article 150.2 of the Constitution.

The Barcelona-based bank, which was totally nationalised in December 2012 and received a €9.08 billion bailout, has made profits of €532.2 million in 2013, which would represent €167.8 million without the extraordinary profits. In 2012, CatalunyaCaixa posted losses of €11.86 billion. In 2013, the operational costs were reduced by 13.1%, having drastically reduced the number of employees and branches. The bank's capital ratio is now 14.36% and the main capital following Basel III criteria reached 12.3%, which represents liquidity of €15.01 billion. With these figures, the Spanish Government is in a better position to sell CatalunyaCaixa, which forecasts profits also for 2014. This company was the result of merging the banking business of 3 savings banks in 2011: Caixa Catalunya, Caixa Tarragona and Caixa Manresa, which disappeared after a long tradition of social work. The operation was part of Spain's restructuring of the banking sector.

Spain's Constitutional Court has reached a unanimous decision against the Catalan Parliament's 'Declaration of Sovereignty', approved in January 2013 and appealed by the Spanish Government. In May 2013 the Constitutional Court put the Declaration on hold, temporarily stopping its implementation while it was reaching a definitive decision, which has happened this Tuesday evening. In the end the Court has declared the first part of the text, which stated that "the people of Catalonia is, for reasons of democratic legitimacy, a sovereign political and legal subject", "unconstitutional and void". However, it adds that the people of Catalonia have "the right to decide" but not "to self-determination", and it points out that the Constitution can be reformed. After months of internal debate and previous failed attempts to reach a consensus, the decision arrived a few hours after the Catalan Parliament had approved a motion to disqualify 3 of the 12 members of the Constitutional Court of not being impartial on this issue.