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A snub. The Catalan government announced this morning that its secretary general of Digital and Territorial Policies, Ricard Font, would not attend the press conference called by the Spanish transport minister, Raquel Sánchez, in relation to the agreement on the future of Catalonia's B-40 highway, between the Spanish government, the Generalitat and local councils. The Catalan adminstration stayed away from the event "as a sign of rebuke due to the lack of state investment in Catalonia", which became apparent after the release of latest official data on the execution of the 2021 budget. In this line, the president of the Catalan government, Pere Aragonès, said that "the Spanish government must be aware that the time for words has passed. Now is the time for execution and compliance". Aragonés himself was delivering the opening speech at the 33rd Business Encounter in the Pyrenees this Friday, and he took the opportunity to demand that new formulas be found to achieve greater budget execution. The president added that the new highway proposals of the Spanish government "are not based on any specific agreement; therefore, once again, just words," he said. "The repeated non-compliance of the last few years, with absolutely inexplicable figures, is unjustifiable: the competitiveness, the economy and the quality of our country are at stake," Aragonés reiterated. However, he said that "there is a fundamental political problem and that is that the state is thinking radially."

 

The Olympic bid

When the president arrived, about a dozen people from the Stop the Olympics platform had gathered at the doors of the Palau d'Esports in La Seu d'Urgell and they received him with banners and chants calling for the candidacy to be withdrawn. However, in Aragonès's speech, he emphasized that "the people of these [Pyrenean] counties must be included, offering them the ability to decide freely on the opportunity to hold the Games here". The president emphasized that the celebration of this sporting event "will contribute to the development and progress of the territory, with sustainable and necessary infrastructures for these counties, which will mean improvements for the people". In this regard, he was convinced that "it is an opportunity for the territory that we cannot let slip, and also for the whole of Catalonia". He emphasized that Catalonia is ready to organize them "as a whole" and that they expect a response with the utmost "urgency". He added that the collaboration with the Spanish Olympic Committee has been honest and he is confident that this will continue to be the case. "There were those who thought that Catalan independence supporters would be the ones to put spanners in the works and create difficulties," said Aragonès, who also said that they were working with "maximum complicity and loyalty and a responsible attitude". Finally, he emphasized that the Pyrenees deserve the opportunity which the Winter Games represent.

State of businesses in Lleida

In response to concerns about the relocation of companies from Lleida to the neighbouring territory of Aragon, the Catalan president explained that, around October, his government plans to approve a new regulation to stimulate economic activity. This new instrument must make it possible to "designate strategic projects for the country" for which bureaucratic procedures are reduced and there is a guardian figure watching over the process. In this regard, he sees this legislative change as a "key element", adding a "more decentralized" view on planning issues. For his part, the mayor of La Seu d'Urgell, Francesc Viaplana, took the opportunity to make some self-criticism of the institutions - of which he is part - and he argued for the need to “help the business fabric to ensure a key return for the progress of the territory and society in general”. The mayor reiterated the value of hosting a landmark event such as the Business Encounter in the Pyrenees in La Seu d’Urgell, expressing the desire for this collaboration to last.