Catalan leader says to freeze parliamentary support to Spanish PM over spying row

Catalonia's leftist Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya party won't support the Spanish government in Parliament unless Madrid restores confidence following reports that Madrid spied upon pro-independence figures.

This could cause problems for Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, as his leftist coalition government lacks the majority in parliament and Pere Aragones (the party of Catalonia's head of government) has been instrumental to passing legislation.

Canada's Citizen Lab group stated earlier this week, that more than 60 people connected to the Catalan separatist movements, including Aragones and three of his predecessors, were targets of "Pegasus," spyware created by Israel's NSO Group.

Press were told Wednesday by Aragones that Esquerra and Spain’s ruling Socialists had lost trust. He believed Spain's spy agency was responsible for the alleged surveillance. This move would have required approval from the government.

He said, "Until this confidence has been restored, there will not be any possibility to continue as we were some week ago, supporting Spain's government in terms of stability in parliament," in an interview in the Barcelona 15th-century government palace.

He stated that the loss of trust would also stop a fledgling diplomatic dialogue following Catalonia's failed 2017 independence bid, which triggered Spain's worst political crisis in decades.

Tuesday's statement by the Spanish government denied spying illegally on Catalan independence leaders. However, it did not comment on whether any court-approved electronic surveillance was undertaken.

Aragones claimed that the allegations are the largest case of mass surveillance by a democracy in recent years. He argued that software like Pegasus should be used only in investigations targeting terrorists or organised crime.

Madrid should respond in a clear, strong, and transparent manner, calling for an internal and external investigation.

Citizen Lab reports that Aragones was spied upon as deputy regional leader prior to taking office in 2021. He said that he was not certain his phone was being tapped at the moment.

He stated, "We cannot pretend like nothing has happened... Today it's the separatists tap but tomorrow it'll be other sectors not part of Spanish establishment."

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