It had been weeks since the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, addressed a control session with such different topics. Each group in the training drew on their own book to question the PSC leader. Junts for Catalunya, the first opposition group, is the one that has pressed the most, demanding that the president present himself in the Chamber to explain the single financing, which is being negotiated with the central government and the Republicans. Illa, faced with pressure from her decision to consider how to control speculative selling, chose to make clear that she likes the sound of this measure, even if she can’t yet find a way to follow through with it: “If you want to make a lot of money, go elsewhere, the stock market is going up,” she said.
This Wednesday, Junts launched its new leadership of the parliamentary group. Mònica Sales took over from Albert Batet at the top of the rankings and began by questioning the president. “Does it have its own model, designed for the interests of the Catalans, or does it conform to the model of the Spanish government, designed to serve Pedro Sánchez,” the new president of the parliamentary group asked her.
Carles Puigdemont’s party has already registered a request to appear presidentin which, according to Sales, the Head of Government will be able to answer for the failure to comply with the implementation calendar of the investiture agreement relating to the collection of personal income tax by the Revenue Agency of Catalonia or the implementation of the singular model. Illa defended himself by recalling that it was the socialist governments who committed themselves to improving the model. “They can complain a lot, but to no avail,” Illa told him. “In terms of funding, we are closer than yesterday and just a little further than tomorrow from solving a problem that you have not been capable of in many years of government,” he added.
Sales’ question is very intentional. On the one hand, try to tie the president at a key moment, since the success of the financing operation depends on the availability of the Generalitat’s budgets next year. On the other hand, the request to appear allows him to focus attention on an issue in which Esquerra and his negotiation are at the center of attention.
The PP and the PSC agreed on the topic of their question: housing. Alejandro Fernández accused the left of not being able to access the apartments and asked them to rectify the route. The socialist bench, for its part, gave him the opportunity to focus on the message of recent days, following the agitation caused by the decision to study ways to ban the speculative purchase of homes, which flirts with the right to private property. “Our legs won’t shake and we will study all the proposals”, insisted Illa, who believes it is acceptable that with real estate operations one seeks “normal profitability” but “does not do business” like in the stock market. “The price of rent is low and coming down. The housing law works. Fun-ci-o-na.” he snapped at the popular leader.
In his line last week, Esquerra opted for an accusation against Francoism and the far right, avoiding any melee with Illa. In line with this discussion, the CUP also asked the president for the canvas in Catalan, which the Government hung on Madrid’s Gran Vía, as part of its campaign to commemorate half a century since the death of the dictator Francisco Franco. The anti-capitalist deputy Pilar Castillejo had put on the table what she considers a contradiction: that the ability to speak Catalan is valorized when Justice “attacks” linguistic immersion. The socialist leader responded that denouncing the situation of the language “in dark times” is not incompatible with the existence of “margins for improvement” to increase the social use of the language.
In the control session there was also friendly fire. The leader of the House of Commons, Jéssica Albiach, asked Illa directly how much carbon dioxide emissions will increase after the expansion of El Prat airport. Albiach referred to various estimates that speak of 33% or 45% more gas. “The science is clear, it is very clear,” he added, recalling that the possibility of airplanes powered by green hydrogen is still very far away and that there is no plant in Europe capable of producing it.
Illa avoided entering the arena with his investment partners and stressed that his path regarding expansion is completely different. Of course, he pledged to ensure that the expansion complies with all environmental regulations, that all necessary compensations are provided, and reminded Albiach that Spain has been recognized in its fight against climate change, now occupying eleventh place in the list of countries.
Finally, Vox and Aliança Catalana did not deviate even a millimeter from what was expected of them in a control session. Those of Ignacio Garriga asked for information on the insecurity situation in the neighborhoods of Tarragona. Sílvia Orriols, for her part, played with parliamentary courtesy, asking Illa two for one in her question: in the first she asked her to call the elections and in the second, for her opinion on the friendly Palestine-Catalonia match. Him president He accused Garriga of going to the neighborhoods just to take a photo and disgraced him by negotiating the future of Valencia’s presidency in the offices. He told Orriols, as always, that only failure awaits him as a political option and defended his actions against the genocide.
