Catalan crisis escalates as leader rules out elections

Region faces direct rule by Madrid after Puigdemont stuns politicians by refusing an early vote

CATALONIA’S president has said he will not hold snap regional elections that could break a deadlock between Madrid and separatists, escalating the political crisis rocking the country. Carles Puigdemont twice postponed planned addresses yesterday in which he had been expected to call elections in Catalonia to head off moves by Madrid to take direct control of the region.

But in a move that stunned Spain’s political establishment yesterday afternoon, Mr Puigdemont said he would not call early elections because he did not have “guarantees that would allow them to be held in absolute normality”.

Spain’s senate is due to vote today on plans put forward by Mariano Rajoy, the prime minister, to use exceptional constitutional powers to impose direct rule on Catalonia. These powers would allow the Spanish government to remove Mr Puigdemont from office, assume total control of Catalan finances and place the region’s parliament under direction from Madrid.

In his address, Mr Puigdemont said he had listened to advice from his proindependence allies, some of whom favoured elections, while others, such as Oriol Junqueras, the Catalan vice-president, wished to declare independence based on the mandate from an illegal referendum held on Oct 1. The president said he had felt a duty “to avert the impact on our institutions from the application of Article 155”, which he called “unlawful, abusive and unjust”.

But, he continued, he had not received guarantees that elections could be held without a disruptive intervention by the Spanish government. Mr Puigdemont said it was up to the Catalan parliament to decide how to proceed in the face of suspended self-rule.

“[On Friday] we will finally chart a new direction for this country,” said Lluís Corominas of Mr Puigdemont’s ruling coalition at the start of a debate on the application of Article 155.

Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, Spain’s deputy prime minister, criticised Mr Puigdemont for refusing to attend the national parliament to make his case for dialogue and reform, adding that the government would guarantee that free and fair elections could take place in Catalonia within the next six months.

“The ultimate objective of Article 155 is to hold elections in a situation of political normality and institutional neutrality,” she said in the senate. Mr Rajoy’s ruling Popular Party has a sufficient majority to trigger Article 155, and has been offered support by the centrist Ciudadanos and Spain’s main opposition socialist party.

Catalonia’s moderate business minister resigned last night in protest at Mr Puigdemont’s move. “I resign. My attempts at dialogue have failed again. I hope I was useful to Carles Puigdemont and to Catalans until the last minute,” said Santi Vila who was opposed to Catalonia declaring independence.