It was an unusual day this Wednesday, with a narrative twist and surprise at the last moment, on the finish line. Junts, which before lunchtime assured that it 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 votes of the first two and abstain in the third. In exchange, Carles Puigdemont's party obtained a commitment from the socialists to satisfy several of its demands.
Among the compensations that, according to JxCat, have been extracted from the socialists, notable measures include the transfer of powers regarding immigration – "comprehensive delegation" – to the Generalitat through article 150.2 of the Constitution, as well as the economic resources necessary for its management. ; the suppression of article 43 bis in the Civil Procedure Law, which, in his opinion, could make the application of the amnesty difficult and give judges an instrument to delay its entry into force; the immediate publication of the fiscal balances, which have not been revealed by the central Administration since 2016; and measures to facilitate the return of companies that changed their headquarters in October 2017.
Some of these issues must be introduced through the processing of the decrees validated this Wednesday as a bill, despite the fact that in the previous days Junts had repeated that they did not trust this procedure offered by Moncloa. Be that as it may, the negotiating marathon of the last few hours caused some and others, when the limit approached, to move from their initial position. In reality, despite the misgivings, the post-convergents trusted the word of the PSOE since nothing had been initialed at first and that is why they did not vote in the first two decrees. In the third, which was voted on later when it was repeated, they did so with one abstention because they had already signed the pact, according to consulted sources.
In recent days, other demands had also been put on the table that will be satisfied, such as that olive oil be considered a basic consumer product with 0% VAT; that the resources allocated to Catalonia for the digitalization of the judicial system increase from 1.2 to 6.2 million euros; that the central Executive assume the total cost of free public transport; as well as the recognition of the historical rights of Catalonia in matters of local government. An aspect highly celebrated by Puigdemont's party.
“The recognition of historical rights in matters of local government is a recognition of the uniqueness of Catalonia in its institutional organization,” JxCat sources point out. “This uniqueness was already included in the Statute of 2006, which in article 5 refers to historical rights, as well as in the institution of regional councils,” they add.
Thus, Junts explains that this point is relevant because it opens up avenues for the recognition of historical rights such as the privileges that it had had in the past and could lead to an economic agreement. In any case, the ruling of the Constitutional Court that cut the Statute restricted the reading of that article.
“In Euskadi they have a unique system for historical rights,” add these sources, who believe that this point and the transfer of powers regarding immigration 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 avoid coffee for everyone: 150.2 of the Constitution and historical rights.” “Therefore, this recognition is essential to be able to apply the agreements in Catalonia in a unique way, it is a path that has been closed for decades in Spain,” concludes this other source consulted.
On the other hand, the issue of immigration is not trivial for Junts. In fact, it is the most important. This weekend the party is holding a meeting of the national council in El Morell (Tarragonès) in which a resolution calling for holding a convention this year to address the issue of immigration will be debated and voted on. Puigdemont, at the beginning of September, when he gave the conference in which he outlined the negotiating framework with the PSOE for the investiture of Pedro Sánchez, already requested the transfer of powers in this matter.
In the party of Jordi Turull and Laura Borràs they are concerned about the possible emergence of an essentialist and anti-immigration sovereignist formation led by the mayor of Ripoll, Sílvia Orriols. Their concern, they say, does not lie in the electoral aspect, but in the impact it can have on the cohesion and transmission of Catalan identity, now that Catalonia has reached eight million inhabitants. “The social elevator is at risk,” they point out from JxCat, which believes that Orriols' speech limits Catalanness to a very small and minority issue and endangers the Pujolian sentence that anyone who lives and works in Catalonia is a Catalan.
The leader of Junts in Madrid, Míriam Nogueras, in relation to the return of companies, had asked from the lectern to guarantee that the corporate headquarters is located where the management center or main activity is, without already mentioning the request for sanctions for those who do not comply. Her request was that this aspect be reinforced in the Capital Companies Law to reverse the flight of companies that led to the decree approved by Mariano Rajoy's government in October 2017.
After the plenary votes, the party executive met electronically and Turull explained the sealed agreements to the other members of the leadership, who gave their approval to the agreement. The general secretary was in Madrid on Tuesday and negotiated Junts' position with the socialists, but this Wednesday morning he returned to Barcelona, when it seemed that things had already been settled. In the Moncloa, however, at all times they hoped to seal the entente that in the end has turned out to be accommodating and very satisfactory for the post-convergents. "Maintaining the position allows us to achieve things that have never been achieved. Catalonia wins," celebrated Josep Rius, spokesperson and vice president of the party.
