Yesterday was an unusual day, with a narrative twist and surprise at the last moment, on the finish line. Together, who before lunch assured that he would reject the Government’s decrees – the so-called omnibus, that of the Ministry of Labor and the extension of the social shield -, ended up facilitating their approval by not participating in the voting in the first two or abstaining in the third. In exchange, the formation of Carles Puigdemont wrested from the socialists a commitment to meet some of their demands.
In the counterparties that, according to JxCat, they have snatched from the socialists – the post-convergents trusted the word of the PSOE, since there was nothing initialed -, the transfer of powers in matters of immigration “from integral way” to the Generalitat through article 150.2 of the Constitution as well as the financial resources necessary to manage them; the deletion of article 43 bis in the Civil Procedure Law, which, in his opinion, could make it difficult to apply the amnesty and give judges an instrument to delay its entry into force; the immediate publication of fiscal balance sheets, which the central administration has not disclosed since 2016, and measures to facilitate the return of companies that changed their headquarters in October 2017.
Some of these issues will have to be introduced through the processing of the decrees validated yesterday as a bill, despite the fact that in the days before Junts they had repeated that they did not trust the procedure offered by Moncloa. Be that as it may, the negotiating marathon of the last few hours caused some, when the limit was approaching, to move from their initial position.
In recent days, other demands had also been put on the table that will be met, such as olive oil being considered a basic consumer product with a 0% VAT; that the resources allocated to Catalonia for the digitization of the judicial system increase from 1.2 to 6.2 million euros; that the Central Executive assumes all the cost of free public transport; as well as the recognition of the historical rights of Catalonia in matters of local regime.
“The recognition of historical rights in matters of local regime is a recognition of the uniqueness of Catalonia in its institutional organization”, point out JxCat sources. “This uniqueness was already included in the 2006 Statute, which in article 5 refers to historical rights, as well as in the institution of county councils”, they add. So, from Juntsexpliven that this point is relevant because it opens up avenues for the recognition of historical rights, such as the furos it had in the past and could lead to an economic concert. In any case, the sentence of the Statute restricted the reading of this article.
“In Euskadi they have a unique system for historical rights”, add these sources, who believe that this point, together with the transfer of powers in the matter of immigration, can open new paths to explore in the negotiation with the PSOE.
Another voice from the party explains that the Constitution “offers two main ways to give content to singularity and escape from coffee for everyone: 150.2 of the Constitution and historical rights”. “Therefore, this recognition is essential to be able to apply the agreements in a unique way in Catalonia, it is a path that had been closed in Spain for decades”, concludes this source.
On the other hand, the question of immigration is not futile for Junts. In fact, it is the most important. This weekend the party is holding a national council meeting in Morell (Tarragonès) in which a resolution will be debated and voted on that calls for a convention to be held this year to address the issue of immigration. Puigdemont, at the beginning of September, when he delivered the conference in which he defined the negotiating framework with the PSOE for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez, already asked for the transfer of powers in this matter.
In the party of Jordi Turull and Laura Borràs they are worried about the possible irruption of an essentialist and anti-immigration sovereignist formation led by the mayoress of Ripoll, Sílvia Orriols. Their worry, they say, does not lie in the electoral aspect, but in the impact it can have on cohesion and the transmission of Catalanity, now that Catalonia has reached eight million inhabitants. “The social elevator is at risk”, point out from JxCat, which believes that Orriols’ speech limits Catalanity to a very small and minority issue and endangers the Pujolian sentence that a Catalan who lives and works in Catalonia is at risk.
The leader of Junts a Madrid, Miriam Nogueras, in relation to the return of companies, asked from the lectern to guarantee that the corporate headquarters is established where the center of management or the main activity is, but it is no longer mention the request for sanctions to those who do not comply.
