Spain: Rajoy Insists 2017 Budget To Be Presented, Won’t Call Elections

While speaking about Catalonia during an interview on the “Los Desayunos de TVE” program, Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, argued that “we are better together, we are more, we are much better.” He also said that this is an important and difficult issue, although they will try to resolve the situation “with the greatest of common sense and balance.”

Rajoy underlined his intention for the current legislature, “to last as long as it can” because that is “reasonable” and because “this is a positive message to send out.” In this regard, he said that will not call new elections and that he will present the Budget for 2017.

On the issue of public accounts, Rajoy stressed that, “we are going to talk to everyone.” He went on to highlight one particularly positive and important fact: “We have already approved the spending ceiling, what we can spend and the revenue area,” he said.

Furthermore, Rajoy rated the first 100 days of this new government highly because, besides approving the spending ceiling, the first steps have been taken towards agreements on various issues, including education and pensions.

“Certain steps are being taken in the right direction,” Rajoy said, adding he hopes that, “we are all up to the task.”

With regard to Catalonia, Rajoy again called for compliance with the law because any other action would erode, “the rules of coexistence,” and, “we would no longer be in a democratic society based on the rule of law.”

After recalling that the world is moving towards processes of integration and not division, Rajoy stressed that, “we are better together, we are more, we are much better, we are united by our history” and “we are the oldest nation in Europe.”

Rajoy said he believes that the solution now requires three things: firstly, to talk about the real issues (regional financing, long-term care and infrastructure, etc.); secondly, to make sure that institutions serve all citizens (and not only those in favor of independence); and, thirdly, to recover the internal cohesion destroyed by “the pro-independence movement.”

Nevertheless, Rajoy accepted that Catalonia is one of the issues that most “concerns” him and that it is a “difficult” problem. Nonetheless, the Government of Spain will try to resolve it “with the greatest of common sense and balance,” he said.

In this vein, Rajoy defended the government’s action as being “very clear, very sharp and very understandable.”

According to Rajoy, he has met his obligation to guarantee the unity of Spain, national sovereignty and the equality of all Spaniards, and that he is now letting the courts act against those who broke the law on November 9.

Rajoy described the fact that the Regional Government of Catalonia is now being “conditioned, blackmailed and threatened” by “a group of extremists such the CUP” as “very dangerous.” rajoy said that this not only relates to the matter of independence but that, “there could be a change in the economic and social model of Catalonia that could lead to a situation that, in my opinion, would not be good for anyone.”