The Scottish first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, will make an official visit to Catalonia to strengthen relations between the two governments. Confirmation came from the minutes of the meeting she held with Catalan president Quim Torra in Edinburgh last month, where Torra invited her to Barcelona.
"The President extended an invite to the First Minister to visit Barcelona, the First Minister indicated she would be delighted to do so", the document says. No final date has yet been agreed, but it's expected to take place in the coming weeks.
In this new meeting, the two governments intend to continue working along the lines set in their last meeting in July, the first high-level meeting between them in almost a decade. In July, they analysed the Catalan and Scottish independence movements and expressed support for Catalonia's right to self-determination through a referendum like that held in Scotland in 2014.
They agreed that "the way forward for Catalonia must be through peaceful and democratic solutions involving dialogue between the Spanish and Catalan authorities". The first minister's pre-meeting briefing, released along with the minutes, shows that she was to offer "views on the independence referendum process and Edinburgh agreement [between Westminster and Holyrood on the terms for the 2014 Scottish referendum], including any lessons learned".
Torra and Sturgeon also want to reinforce commercial ties between Catalonia and Scotland, highlighting "opportunities for bilateral cooperation".
The news hasn't been well-received by Scottish Conservatives, with one MP saying it's "simply a political visit between two separatist parties". He continued to say "there can be no justification for Scottish taxpayers meeting the tab" and that Sturgeon's SNP should pay for the trip itself.