The Minister of Research and Universities of the Generalitat, Joaquim Nadal, considers that Catalonia has to return to “the purest essences” of the Statute of 2006 to have a “solid” self-government and thus “advance” towards self-determination and amnesty. In statements to La 2 and Ràdio 4, Nadal has also opined that Puigdemont’s letter – on the occasion of his 5 years in Belgium – “does not add anything new” to the Catalan political scene.
The former socialist leader, now an executive of the ERC, has opted to recover the “fullness” of the statutory text, without the cut by the Constitutional Court, and place it as a “starting point” to strengthen dialogue. In this sense, Nadal has appealed to unite “the Catalonia of 80%” with the intention of “rebuilding a climate of essential trust”.
At the same time, after the letter released by former president Carles Puigdemont -on his fifth birthday in Belgium-, Nadal said that “the legitimate president of Waterloo is an episode” of 2017 and that one cannot continue “appealing to his presidential legitimacy”, although It has recognized the authority it enjoys in the independence movement. The Minister believes that this letter “does not add anything too new” in the current political context. He has also added that Puigdemont is putting on “the bandage before the wound” if he thinks that the PSOE’s intention to reform sedition may be a trap.
Another issue on the political agenda continues to be the Catalan budgets. In this sense, Nadal has assured that they will make “all the necessary movements” to “open the spectrum” and approve the accounts. “We will talk with the commons and with other formations that have said they are willing to talk,” explained the minister, referring to the PSC. Even so, he has not renounced Junts’ support and has sent him a message: “The budgets have Giró’s accent and they cannot forget that”. Regarding Junts, he has also said that he “is wrong” if he enters into a “negative and obstructive” policy to try to reach elections and win them.
The head of Research and Universities has marked as a priority of his department “strengthening” the knowledge society and “satisfying” the demands of universities in relation to improving the quality of teaching. Likewise, he is committed to a “growing feminization” in equal opportunities to access teaching and research positions. Nadal has lamented that there is currently no female rector in Catalan universities.
