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Less than 24 hours before the constitution of the Bureau for Spain's Congress of Deputies, all eyes are on one political party: Together for Catalonia (Junts per Catalunya). The party's decision will be fundamental to deciding the political colour of the organ which is the governing body of the Spanish lower house and is headed by the parliamentary speaker. It is a vote that constitutes a first trial by fire for the negotiations between Junts and the until-now-governing Socialists (PSOE), and the outcome is still impossible to predict just hours before Thursday morning's vote. In this expectant climate, exiled Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, founder and moral leader of the party, has warned: "The [issue of the] Bureau of Congress, for us, is not about obtaining a place on it, nor is it about the investiture [of a new Spanish government]. We cannot advance nationally on the basis of promises made by those who always fail to keep them, and that is why verifiable actions are needed before any vote is committed."

Via social media, Puigdemont recalled that his party is distrustful of the Spanish parties and is not prepared to give away its votes without firm commitments. "Our position has not changed, no matter how many last-minute pressures and sprints there are, or if there is some insult that gets out of hand. In other words: we have no trust in the Spanish political parties, all the caution we can take is insufficient and the promises made leave us neither hot nor cold".

In addition, he wrote about the "political and media system" of the Spanish state, with some media calling Junts's demands "blackmail". "The Spanish political and media system talks about blackmail, but it's an error that reveals the extent to which they ignore, either out of disinterest or arrogance, the reality that has brought us to this point," he said.

Translation of entire Tweet:
"The cardinal points of our position have not changed, no matter how many last-minute pressures and sprints there are, or if there is some insult that gets out of hand. In other words: we have no confidence in the Spanish political parties, all the caution we can take is insufficient and the promises made leave us neither hot nor cold.

The [issue of the] Bureau of Congress is, for us, not about obtaining a place on it, nor is it about the investiture. We cannot advance nationally on the basis of promises made by those who always fail to keep them, and that is why we need verifiable facts before committing to any vote. And it doesn't matter if we're talking about agreements over the Bureau or more profound agreements, such as the investiture [of a new Spanish prime minister].

The Spanish political and media system talks about blackmail, but it is a mistake that reveals the extent to which they ignore, either out of disinterest or arrogance, the reality that has brought us here. It is the result of a deep mistrust, based on actual events, that will not disappear through an agreement and will not be deepened by a disagreement." — krls.eth / Carles Puigdemont

The PSOE's candidate for speaker: Francina Armengol  


The PSOE has proposed Francina Armengol as candidate to preside over the Congress of Deputies. The former president of the Balearic Island autonomous government is the party's choice to replace Meritxell Batet, after the Catalan Socialist leader declined to continue in the job. Socialist HQ considers that Armengol is a figure of consensus among the pro-independence and nationalist parties. A possible attempt to maximise its support in this sector, with eyes fixed on Junts in particular, in a decisive vote. Will it be enough? Thursday morning's vote will reveal all. Junts has convened a telematic executive meeting on Thursday morning at 8am, two hours before the constitution of the Congress.