We need normality, say Catalan business leaders, as political deadlock stifles region

CATALAN business leaders are demanding an end to the political squabbling that has set the Spanish government and the region of Catalonia against each other.

It comes ahead of a crucial session to install a new regional parliament as pro-independence parties struggle to form a government with many of their senior members in prison, facing charges or in exile. Businesses want an end to the political conflict, which has caused 3,000 companies to move out of Catalonia, hit tourism and undermined growth in the region.

“What everybody needs is normality,” said José Luis Bonet, head of Freixenet, the Catalan cava producer. He has kept his sparkling wine business in Catalonia but has not ruled out joining the businesses that have already moved their fiscal bases elsewhere.

A critic of secessionism, Mr Bonet, who is president of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, welcomed Madrid’s implementation of direct rule under Article 155, saying it had given “the hope of respect for constitutional order and stability”.

However, December’s elections, which returned pro-independence parties to power providing they can form a coalition, still left uncertainty in the region. If this meant a new period of instability, his company would probably move, Mr Bonet said.

Few dispute the need for an end to the turmoil. But amid the chaos surrounding the formation of a new government and Spain’s refusal to negotiate on independence, hopes of a way out of the deadlock are fading.

Most challenging is the question of the presidency. The largest pro-independence party insists Carles Puigdemont must be restored as leader, but he faces arrest on sedition charges the moment he steps back on Spanish soil.

A proposal made last week by his team for a long-distance inauguration, perhaps by satellite link, was rejected out of hand by Madrid.