Catalonia determined the topic the first Cabinet meeting of the new Spanish government on Friday. Premier Pedro Sánchez wants to start talks with the government of the Catalan Quim Torra before the summer break.
“Of course, Catalonia is one of our tasks and there is an urgent need to start a dialogue – with the Constitution in one hand and the tireless dialogue in the other,” said government spokeswoman and Minister of Education Isabel Celaá.
As a first sign of goodwill, the Ministry of Finance lifted the prior checking of Barcelona’s expenses. This allows the Catalan administration to remittances for the first time since September 2017, without first registering in Madrid.
“Sánchez’s discourse sounds good, but we want to see action,” said spokeswoman for the separatist party PDeCAT, Marta Pascal.
The deposed Catalan Prime Minister, Carles Puigdemont, said in Berlin: “Really important are not expectations, but politics.”