More than thirty Chinese companies and investment agencies have visited Barcelona in search of business opportunities. The Catalan capital is a gateway to the European market for Asian companies, thanks to its sea port, airport, geographic location and a dynamic and well connected economy. In addition, Barcelona is also a leading centre in the Euro-Mediterranean Area.
The Catalan President, Artur Mas, announced that he along with ministers, deputy ministers, and directors-general would not receive the Christmas bonus this year. The measure affects all the Catalan Government’s higher-ranked staff and is meant to send a message of austerity. 350 people will see their salary reduced, saving 1.8 million euros of public money. It is an answer to doctor and nursing unions, who had asked politicians to reduce their salaries. Last year, higher-ranked officials experienced a 15% salary cut.
The Catalan President Artur Mas has asked the European Union “not to forget about a land that feels European and needs deeper and closer ties with Europe” in the ‘FERRMED Trans-European Cluster Conference’ in Brussels. Previously he has met with the Vice President of the European Commission, responsible for Industry and Entrepreneurship, Antonio Tajani. The Mediterranean Railway Corridor would directly link Central and Northern Europe with Spanish ports and subsequently North Africa.
The presidents of Catalonia, the Valencian Community and the Region of Murcia met in Barcelona to ask the Spanish Government to prioritise the construction and inclusion of the Mediterranean Railway Corridor in the European Transport network. This infrastructure is essential for both the Spanish and European economies, as it would transport freight and passengers non-stop from Gibraltar to Stockholm, passing through Valencia, Barcelona and Lyon. In times of public deficit, there is not enough money to build a railway corridor passing through Madrid, and the Spanish Government has to prioritise the Mediterranean Corridor, which links the main export and industrial centres in the country with Europe.
The Barcelona-based energy multinational and the Catalan Government have signed a cooperative agreement. The Catalan President Artur Mas emphasised that the Catalan multinational “is rising to what the country needs” in the current economic context.
The Catalan President says that he will not work with the conservative PP after the Spanish general election if the party “crosses the red line” and tries to push a language agenda which puts at risk the current Catalan educational system. The leader of the PP in Catalonia, Alicia Sánchez Camacho, says Mas should accept the Courts ruling that have obliged the Government to offer Spanish as well as Catalan as a language of instruction at school.
The President urges institutions and citizens to defend the Catalan education system, which has been put at risk following a court order obliging the Government to include Spanish as a school language of instruction. Meanwhile, the Catalan Minister for Education, Irene Rigau, warns that on the 2nd of November the government “will not separate pupils by language”
“It means that we are not wanted, we are excluded, we are ignored” stated Artur Mas, President of the Catalan Government and leader of the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Coalition (CiU). It was the first time he has spoken on the Constitutional amendment limiting the public deficit that has been agreed on only between the PSOE and the PP. The CiU has protested against reforming the Constitution solely on the basis of the agreement of only two parties. Members of the PP and the PSOE have been trying to convince the CiU to support what both parties had previously agreed, and PM Zapatero (from the PSOE) asked the CiU to show some “moderation”.
The yields for Spanish 10 year bonds are well over 6% while economic growth remains slow
Mas told reporters that he does not enjoy making such cuts but they are necessary to keep Catalonia from bankruptcy
Catalan President Artur Mas will give full support to the next Spanish government if it accepts a new fiscal arrangement for Catalonia. Mas says his party, the centre-right nationalist Convergència i Unió, is the only political force able to become a counter-power to the Spanish conservatives, the most likely winners of the next general election
The Catalan President has inaugurated the expansion of the facilities of the Boehringer Ingelheim pharmaceutical company in Sant Cugat. Artur Mas stressed that behind the crisis “is always the industry, companies turn ideas into products that give way to new opportunities”
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Characterised as one of the most powerful men in combating the Spanish financial crisis, Catalan President Artur Mas presents his forceful economic strategy to the US newspaper
The deal introduces new restrictions on public spending while protecting health, education and social services. The conservatives have asked the Government to change its foreign policy strategy and make it more commercially oriented.
The Catalan Parliament will also file a formal complaint regarding the violent protests that took place last Wednesday in Barcelona. Protesters tried to besiege the Parliament and impede the entrance of MPs, some of whom were insulted, threatened, pushed and sprayed. The Spanish Penal Code states that these type of actions are a felony and offenders could face between three and five years in person. Catalan Police had to protect the Parliament and the MPs, with a deployment of 600 police officers. All political parties condemned the violent acts by protesters and most of the opposition said that the deployment of security forces was too small.