Appearance by President of the Government

Madrid

President of the Government.- Ladies and gentlemen, a very good day to you. I am going to read a very brief statement. We have called you at very short notice and, for that reason, I particularly thank you for attending.

The statement reads as follows:

"Two Parliamentary groups who between them did not obtain a majority of votes in the recent elections to the Regional Parliament of Catalonia have presented a proposed resolution that is in breach of the Spanish Constitution, of the law, of the majority feeling of the people of Catalonia and of the democratic will of the Spanish people as a whole.

This initiative can only be described as a provocation by those that wish to bypass the law, which is quite simply what they plan to do, because they know that the law is not on their side.

The government I head up guarantees and will guarantee that they will not achieve any of their goals and that this proposed resolution, in the event that it is passed by the Regional Parliament of Catalonia, will not take any effect whatsoever.

The State is not going to renounce the use of any of the political and legal mechanisms which, in defence of the sovereignty of the people and general interest of Spain, are attributed thereto by the Spanish Constitution and the law.

Whosoever wishes to separate and divide Catalonia from Spain must be aware that they will not achieve this and they will not do so because they are working against the majority will of the people of Catalonia and of the Spanish people as a whole. They are opposed to the law and to a government prepared to impose this law.

I wish to send out a message of calm to all the people of Spain, and especially to the people of Catalonia. While I am President of the Government, Spain will remain a nation of free and equal citizens. Justice will prevail over senselessness and all of us, I repeat, all of us are subject to the law and to the rulings of our courts.

I have always understood politics from a position of dialogue and moderation, but the defence of my country, of the sovereignty of all the Spanish people, of the democracy we have worked so hard to obtain and the harmonious coexistence and solidarity among all the people of Spain is what I will defend and I will defend this with firmness, with determination and with all the instruments available at law. And I will do things this way because it is my responsibility as President of the Government and through my convictions as a Spaniard".

Q.- President of the Government, the proposal made today by these two political groups states that they will not recognise what the Constitutional Court says, an eventuality which, as you say, will be appealed against. What do you intend to do to ensure the law is upheld in this case?

President of the Government.- As you are well aware, one of the reforms we proposed in the latter part of this term of office was a reform of the Constitutional Court and to provide it with sufficient means and instruments as may be necessary to be used, should the situation arise. Hence, with the instruments available to the Constitutional Court and with all the instruments available under the Spanish Constitution, the only thing I want to say is that I can guarantee that what is contained in this proposed resolution will not take any effect whatsoever. And I regret the fact that some people have reached a situation whereby they are proposing this. I deeply regret this.

Thank you very much.