Administration and CiU reach agreement on Catalan statute

[Harold Schiffman]

Administration and CiU reach agreement on Catalan statute

Spain Herald

PSOE prime minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and CiU (Convergence and
Union, Catalan nationalists) leader Artur Mas reached an agreement on
Saturday that will bring the proposed new Catalan regional
statute<http://www.spainherald.com/1619.html>of economy to the Spanish
parliament for consideration after a six-hour
meeting at the Moncloa Palace. Despite this agreement, separatist leader
Josep Lluis Carod Rovira declared yesterday, "ERC will not promise to say
yes to a text that is no longer that approved by the Catalan parliament."
According to the agreement between Zapatero and CiU leaders Artur Mas and
Josep Antoni Duran Lleida, the word "nation," in reference to Catalonia,
will only appear in the preamble and not in the articles of the new statute,
in contrast to the text passed in the Catalan parliament. In addition, an
internal revenue service co-managed by the central and Catalan governments
will be created, and the Catalan government will receive 50% of all income
taxes collected.

ICV, the Catalan Communists, agreed to the terms of the agreement, but the
Republican Left of Catalonia, ERC, considered that it was "unacceptable."
ERC spokesman Joan Ridao said, "Right now we cannot say that an acceptable
statute can come out of the PSOE-CiU agreement. This is a precipitated yes
from CiU which does not bind us because the two parties negotiated it
between themselves." He added that the agreement excludes fundamental
aspects of the text passed by the Catalan parliament in almost every
section, including tax distribution, national symbols, the Catalan
language, the delegation of powers, education, justice, and EU
representation.

CiU president Artur Mas said, "The Catalan parliament, with the feelings and
the will of the Catalan citizens, has defined Catalonia as a nation by a
large majority." He added that the second article of the Spanish
constitution "recognizes Catalonia's national reality as a nationality. In
this way, nationality and nation are made equal," though in the agreed-upon
text only the current definition of nationality appears. According to Mas,
the important thing is that "for the first time in many, many years, the
Spanish parliament has accepted a definition of Catalonia as a nation
adopted by the Catalan parliament. This is an important success of the
negotiations, seeing the way things were."

Mas admitted that the agreement with Zapatero "resolves the definition of
Catalonia as a nation in a fairly satisfactory way, though not definitively.
We would have liked to go farther. On tax revenue distribution, we managed
to change the system, but not to the point we would have liked. But it is an
important leap forward. The final conclusion is that it is a leap forward,
not just a step, but CiU's goal is still the statute the Catalan parliament
passed on September 30, 2005. We do not renounce this for future years.
Today we can say yes to this statute."

Mas confirmed that the agreement on distribution of tax revenues will
include a "consortium" for tax collection and Catalan administration of "the
majority of taxes." Catalonia's administration will receive the direct
cession of 50% of income tax (IRPF) revenues, 50% of VAT revenues, and 58%
of revenues from the excise taxes on alcohol, tobacco, and gasoline.
According to Mas, there are also "new mechanisms of solidarity that mean
a profound change in the system, and that gives a meaning to the entire
statute." Following the model of the German states, said Mas, those who have
more contribute more, "but without that meaning that they come out behind
the rest." In addition, during the next seven years, Catalonia will receive
central government investments of 18.5% of GDP, and central government
investment will be equal to Catalan regional investment.

http://www.spainherald.com/2586.html
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