Catalonia has always acted as a breakwater in the achievement of competences for the autonomous communities. Catalan and Basque nationalists have used their voting power to obtain greater levels of power in exchange for supporting investitures or providing stability to the central government in power, both with the Popular Party (PP) and the Spanish Socialist Workers’ Party (PSOE). This is what Spanish nationalism calls “nationalist blackmail” when in opposition, a practice that is simply known as politics in the rest of the civilized world. Parties like Esquerra Republicana have negotiated dialogue, pardons, and amnesty in exchange for their support to the central government. Others, like Junts per Catalunya, have done the same in a more dramatic and rhetorical way. In Catalonia, it is widely recognized that the dispute is simply about the hegemony of the independence movement.
Currently, the Government of the Generalitat is at stake, a position that will be disputed between the election winner, socialist Salvador Illa, and former president Carles Puigdemont. The independence rhetoric of Junts is once again in full force. A recent episode was Pedro Sánchez’s willingness to negotiate a unique funding arrangement for Catalonia. Puigdemont reacted strongly on social media, accusing the PSOE of trying to “blackmail” ERC. The paradox of the situation is that the unique funding proposal, understood as a fiscal pact or concert, was rejected by Puigdemont’s predecessors. Jordi Pujol and Miquel Roca believed in 1980 that it was unpopular to collect taxes from citizens in the newly established democracy and preferred that Madrid handle taxation. This information was shared by former Basque government economist Pedro Luis Uriarte in his book, The Basque Economic Concert: A Personal View. Puigdemont is strongly against this claim, although his family’s use of Montoro’s tax amnesty suggests otherwise.
It is widely known that Catalonia faces financing issues, while the Basque Country and Navarre have their own unique fiscal arrangements by tradition and constitutional mandate. Additionally, the Basque GDP accounts for 5.9% of Spain’s total, while Catalonia’s exceeds 19%, which is a significant factor. Pujol himself claims that he was persuaded by the central government of Adolfo Suárez not to push for the fiscal arrangement during the complex transition period. Puigdemont now aims to separate the funding issue from political negotiations to ensure that Pedro Sánchez does not “blackmail” ERC. His ultimate goal is to regain the presidency of the Generalitat, a challenging task as he requires the support of both the Catalan socialists, who he left in the lurch in 2022, and Esquerra, whose favor he seeks. The PSOE, meanwhile, should refrain from politicizing matters that are part of Catalan natural rights.
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