State of alarm extended until June 7
Prolongation passes after initial uncertainty when pro-independence parties said they would vote No
nationalist
Rajoy stripped of Spanish presidency
Pedro Sánchez to form new Socialist government in coming days with votes of Catalan pro-independence parties
Basque party paves the way for ousting Rajoy
EAJ-PNV will back motion of no-confidence; pro-independence parties vote to be decisive
Vote of no confidence to oust Rajoy underway
Pro-independence parties crucial for the initiative to succeed
Juncker urges Spain to form "stable government" amid Catalan independence crisis
The European Commission’s President, Jean-Claude Juncker, urged Spain to form a “stable government” and do it “as quick as possible, as it belongs to the Eurozone”. Juncker refused to “give an opinion on the movements in some regions and provinces”, referring to Catalonia’s push for independence, but called for “Spain to rise to” the circumstances. In a similar vein, the Euro Parliament’s President, Martin Schulz, assured that the Catalan case would have to be “dealt with within the framework of the Constitution”. The Vice President of Flemish Nationalist party N-VA, Sander Loones, commented that the EC “missed a great opportunity” by not taking up a role as mediator and noted that “saying that it is a Spanish issue only is a way of making sure that nothing will move”.
Spanish Government blames Catalan and Basque nationalisms for the lack of foreign investment and job creation
The ‘number two’ of the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalists (CiU), Josep Antoni Duran i Lleida, immediately replied that the Spanish Government is “the one creating mistrust” because of “its discrepancies” and Mariano Rajoy’s “absenteeism”. He also criticised the Spanish Government for not putting in place an action plan to promote employment, “despite having the tools to do so”. Soraya Sáenz de Santamaria, the Spanish Government’s Deputy Prime Minister and Spokesperson, has blamed Catalan and Basque nationalisms for “promoting a climate of instability”. They create “mistrust and insecurity”, which “keeps away foreign investment” and “job creation”, said Sáenz de Santamaria the week Basque elections have been announced.
Leader of the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Party ensures Spanish Labour Market Reform
Prime Minister Zapatero needs the votes from other parties to pass his Labour Market reform. Artur Mas, President of the Centre-Right Catalan Nationalist Party (CiU) has affirmed today that his party will not block the reform in the Spanish Parliament. Ci