German political factions have failed in their initial efforts to form a three-way coalition because of disagreements over environment, business, and migration policies.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel had set Thursday as the deadline for exploratory talks about forming a coalition government following elections on September 24.

Merkel’s conservative CDU/CSU bloc won 246 seats; the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP), 80 seats; and the left-leaning environment-friendly Green Party, 67 in those elections. There are currently 709 seats in the German legislative body, or the Bundestag.

The coalition government being negotiated is referred to as “Jamaica” because the parties’ colors match those of the Caribbean island country’s flag.

The exploratory talks of the three parties continued into the early hours of Friday. Later in the day, they announced that they had failed to find common ground to begin formal coalition negotiations.

The three parties said further talks would be postponed to Friday noon.

“We’ll continue at noon today,” said Winfried Kretschmann, a Greens negotiator and premier of the state of Baden-Wuerttemberg, early on Friday.

The main sticking points between the groups are their different perspectives over climate, migration, and finances.

Conservative participants said some of those differences might not be resolved at all.

“I don’t know if we can resolve all the discrepancies, all the disagreements,” said Joachim Herrmann, a senior member of the CSU, the sister party of Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU).

Failure to clinch a deal could lead to new elections.

Alice Weidel, the co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), criticized the would-be coalition partners for failing to reach a deal, telling daily Die Welt, “If the (conservative) Union, FDP, and Greens don’t reach an agreement soon, there should be new elections.”

This is a scenario none of the negotiating parties would want, for fear that the far-right AfD could make further gains after already entering the parliament in the September 24 elections.

While Merkel is perceived as a skilled negotiator, the failure to form the coalition government has already been described as her loss.

“A failure of Jamaica would be her failure,” wrote the mass-circulation German daily Bild.

Culled from Presstv

Nearly 40 Conservative MPs have agreed to sign a letter of no confidence in Prime Minister Theresa May, according to The Sunday Times.

A vote of no confidence means that May could be forced from office and replaced by another Conservative.

There is a need for eight more MPs to trigger a party leadership contest. That is not unlikely as the number of parliament members, who want to oust May, has increased in recent weeks.

One minister told the paper, “It’s a horrible thing to say… but we are getting closer and closer to the point whereby we need some time in opposition to regroup.”

Divided over how to pull Britain out of the European Union and hit by several sex scandals involving ministers, May’s government has been getting weaker in asserting control over the country’s chaotic political situation

On Friday, EU Brexit chief Michel Barnier handed Britain a two-week ultimatum to make concessions on a divorce agreement if it wants to unlock the next phase of talks in December.

Frenchman Barnier said it was “vital” for Britain to increase its offer on its exit bill — a figure senior EU officials put at up to 60 billion euros — to open up talks on a future trade deal.

Tory Brexiteers, however, warned May over the ultimatum, advising the premier against giving in to the EU demands.

One Conservative former cabinet minister called the demands “unacceptable,” while another prominent backbencher said any more concessions would be a “sign of weakness.”

May has also come under criticism after two lawmakers from the Labour Party and two from the Conservative Party were accused of harassing and propositioning young women inappropriately.

UK Defense Secretary Michael Fallon has also resigned from his position after accepting his misconduct toward a female journalist in the past.

Source: Presstv

Catalonia has been brought to a standstill as hundreds of pro-independence protesters blocked the main roads and halted transportation in the Spanish region.

On Wednesday, crowds blocked roads in the regional capital of Barcelona and caused heavy traffic jams on the highways leading to the regional capital. They also brought to a halt the high-speed train service in the region.

Holding Catalonia’s flags and banners, which read “Free political prisoners,” protesters also broke into police lines and gathered in front of Catalan and local government buildings in Barcelona.

Across the region, schools were closed, roads were blocked, and trains ran on a reduced service.

The general strike was called by pro-independence groups and the CSC trade union to protest the imprisonment of members of Catalonia’s ousted government, which used to be headed by Carles Puigdemont.

The biggest labor unions, CCOO and UGT, said they did not support the strike but would hold protests outside their workplaces.

Pro-independence civil organizations ANC and Omnium as well as students are expected to take to the streets throughout the day.

The Spanish central government sacked Puigdemont and dissolved the regional parliament after legislators passed an independence declaration on October 27. It has called early elections to be held on December 21 to replace the sacked regional government.

Two secessionist parties fail to form coalition

Meanwhile, Catalonia’s two main secessionist parties have so far failed to form an alliance to contest the snap regional elections.

The two main secessionist parties, Puigdemont’s PDeCAT and the ERC Party, could not resolve differences that emerged after a declaration of independence last month.

“It has been impossible to form a joint list and we will therefore have to create a joint front from various candidacies,” said ERC lawmaker Sergi Sabria in a statement.

On Tuesday, Puigdemont called on Catalonia’s political groups to unite against Madrid.

“The ideal would be a broad regional list of parties… that stand for democracy and freedom,” he said.

The ousted leader said that he might be in jail by the time of the elections, “but prison doesn’t deprive anyone of legitimacy.”

On Sunday, Puigdemont turned himself in to Belgian police. Spain had issued an arrest warrant against him on charges of rebellion and sedition. A Belgian judge, however, released him and four of his former ministers on bail.

Source: Presstv

Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, who was sacked by the Spanish government over the region’s declaration of independence, has called for “democratic opposition” to Madrid.

“It’s very clear that the best form of defending the gains made up until now is democratic opposition to article 155,” Puigdemont said in a brief statement on Saturday.

“We continue persevering in the only attitude that can make us winners. Without violence, without insults, in an inclusive way, respecting people and symbols, opinions, and also respecting the protests of the Catalans who do not agree with what has decided the parliamentary majority,” he said.

The deposed Catalon president further said that he and his team would keep working “to build a free country.”

In a copy of his speech sent to AFP, he signed off as “president of the Catalan government,” implying he still considered himself the head of the autonomous region.

He also called on Catalans to defend the republic proclaimed by the regional parliament.

“We need to keep defending the stage in which we have entered with a tireless sense of civic responsibility and peaceful commitment,” he said, adding that “in a democratic society, only parliaments can pick or dismiss presidents.”

The declaration comes nearly a month after Catalonia held an independence referendum on October 1. The Spanish government dismissed the vote as illegal.

On Saturday, the Spanish government announced its decision to invoke article 155, which can, upon application, strip Catalonia of its key autonomous powers and allow the central government to impose direct rule over the wealthy region.

The move by Madrid came after the Catalan parliament voted to declare independence from Spain on Friday.

Soon after the vote, the upper house of Spain’s parliament, the Senate, made the unprecedented move of authorizing Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s government to rule Catalonia directly.

Speaking during a televised speech on Friday, Rajoy said his cabinet had dismissed the regional president and parliament and ordered regional elections to be held on December 21.

Apart from removing the Catalan president, the Spanish premier also fired the region’s police chief and ordered central government ministries to take over the Catalan administration.

In reaction to Madrid’s move, the main secessionist group, the Catalan National Assembly, urged civil servants to respond with “peaceful resistance” and disobey the Spanish government’s orders.

Rajoy’s cabinet later convened to adopt the first measures to govern Catalonia directly.

“Exceptional measures should only be adopted when no other remedy is possible,” Rajoy said during his speech to the Senate on Friday morning. “In my opinion there is no alternative. The only thing that can be done and should be done is to accept and comply with the law.”

Separately on Friday, Spain’s constitutional court started a review of the vote held in the Catalan parliament, saying the state prosecutor and other parties had three days to make allegations of wrongdoing.

A spokesman for Spain’s public prosecutor’s office said it would file rebellion charges next week against the Catalan leader. A court will then decide whether to accept the charges against Puigdemont.

Catalonia already enjoys a high degree of autonomy, but its drive for independence has its roots in the cultural and political suppression that the region experienced during the 1939-1975 Franco dictatorship.

Source: Presstv

Catalonia’s regional parliament has declared independence from Spain, while Madrid immediately imposed direct rule over the region.

The independence motion was approved in the 135-seat chamber on Friday as 70 Catalan lawmakers voted in favor, 10 against. Two ballot papers were blank. The ballot was boycotted by the opposition parties: the Socialist Party, the People’s Party (PP) and Ciudadanos.

Commenting on the news, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy called for calm.

“I ask for calm from all Spaniards. The rule of law will restore legality in Catalonia,” Rajoy said in a tweet minutes after Catalonia’s declaration of independence.

As the independence vote went through, more than 2,000 pro-independence Catalans gathered in the Ciutadella Park outside the regional parliament in Barcelona, chanting “Liberty” in Catalonia and singing traditional songs.

Soon after the vote, the upper house of Spain’s parliament in Madrid made the unprecedented move of authorizing Rajoy’s government to rule Catalonia directly.

In reaction to Madrid’s move, the main secessionist group, the Catalan National Assembly, urged civil servants to respond with “peaceful resistance” and to disobey the Spanish government’s orders.

Rajoy’s cabinet later convened to adopt the first measures to govern Catalonia, which could include dismissing the Barcelona government and assuming direct supervision of Catalan police forces.

“Exceptional measures should only be adopted when no other remedy is possible,” Rajoy said during his speech to the Senate on Friday morning. “In my opinion there is no alternative. The only thing that can be done and should be done is to accept and comply with the law.”

Moreover, Spain’s constitutional court started a review of the vote held in the Catalan parliament. The court said on Friday that the state prosecutor and other parties have three days to make allegations.

Separately, a spokesman for Spain’s public prosecutor’s office said it would file rebellion charges next week against Catalan secessionist leader Carles Puigdemont.  A court will then decide whether to accept the charges against the Catalan president.

Catalan drive faces EU opposition

The independence declaration made other countries and institutions to recognize Catalonia. However, the European Union and some countries and institutions have already made it clear they would not do so and would back the position of Madrid.

European Council President Donald Tusk said in a message posted on Twitter on Friday after the vote, “For EU nothing changes. Spain remains our only interlocutor.”

He also called on Spain to favor “force of argument, not argument of force.” French President Emmanuel Macron, reacting to the news, said, “There is a rule of law in Spain with constitutional rules. Mariano Rajoy wants these rules to be respected and he has my full support.”

Germany also backed the Spanish premier’s position, saying the unilateral declaration of independence violated the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Spain. Commenting on the latest developments in Spain, the United States supported Madrid’s measures to prevent Catalonia’s secession, saying the region is an integral part of the country.

“Catalonia is an integral part of Spain, and the United States supports the Spanish government’s constitutional measures to keep Spain strong and united,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said in a statement.

Meanwhile, a NATO official said Spain was an important ally, adding that Catalonia was “a domestic matter which should be resolved within Spain’s constitutional order.”

Spain has been in turmoil since the Catalan independence referendum that took place on October 1 and was considered by Madrid as illegal. Puigdemont claimed that 90 percent of the voters in the referendum had backed secession, but the turnout had been put at only 43 percent.

Source: Presstv

Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says the “only possible” way to restore legality in Catalonia, which according to him has been liquidated by regional President Carles Puigdemont, is for Madrid to take control of the autonomous region.

Speaking to the parliament on Wednesday, Rajoy said that the government’s plan to invoke Article 155 of the Spanish constitution, which allows Spain to impose direct rule on Catalonia was “exceptional.”

He said he hoped the measure, which includes the curtailment of the Catalan parliament and sacking the government of Puigdemont, would not take too much time to implement.

Rajoy said his government would hold regional elections in Catalonia as soon as possible, but only once law and order was restored.

He has previously called on Spain’s Senate to trigger the Article 155.  The Senate is expected to approve the measures on Friday.

Catalonia has so far been defiant and threatened to unilaterally declare independence if Madrid started the process of suspending the region’s autonomy.

The wealthy region held a banned referendum on secession on October 1. Local officials claimed that 90 percent of the voters in the referendum had backed secession, but the turnout had been put at only 43 percent.

Source: Presstv

The Italian government is ready to open negotiations with Lombardy and Veneto after the two wealthy regions voted overwhelmingly for greater autonomy, Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on Tuesday.

Unlike a recent referendum on independence in Catalonia, which sparked a political crisis in Spain, the Italian votes this weekend were legal, but not binding on Rome.

Making clear he had no intention of making a drama out of the twin ballots, Gentiloni said he was ready to discuss how Lombardy and Veneto wanted to proceed.

“Here we are talking about how to make Italy work better. We are not calling into question Italy and its unity,” Gentiloni said during a visit to an oil refinery close to Venice, the capital of the northeastern Veneto region.

“The government is ready to look into the merits of this … it will be a complex discussion that can’t be done in five minutes,” he added.

Regional governments have the right to ask for greater oversight in 23 policy areas, including the environment, infrastructure, health and education.

The most delicate negotiations are likely to be over tax returns, with Veneto demanding that it be allowed to spend 90 percent of all the taxes raised on its own territory.

Among Italy’s 20 regions, Lombardy and Veneto account for just under a third of its economic output and are home to around 25 percent of its population.

Italy’s poorer, less developed southern regions are worried that they will receive less funding in future if Lombardy and Veneto get to keep more of their own tax take.

Five regions in Italy — the islands of Sicily and Sardinia and three relatively small border areas with linguistic minorities — already have special autonomous status under the constitution. Veneto wants to join them.

However, this would need a change to the constitution, which the government seems unwilling to accept.

“We are ready (to grant greater powers) within the limits fixed by our laws and by our constitution,” Gentiloni said.

Negotiations are likely to take many months and look certain to be interrupted by national elections due by next May. Any deal between the government and the regions will have to be approved by parliament.

The latest opinion polls suggest a hung parliament will emerge from the forthcoming election, making it impossible to predict the government formation that will carry on the negotiations.

(Source: Reuters)

The parliament in Catalonia has harshly criticized the Spanish government for its intentions to take over the regional powers, saying it would do its utmost to defend sovereignty of the independence-seeking territory.

Carme Forcadell, who serves as the speaker of the parliament, said on Saturday that the chamber would not allow Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to dismantle the current regional government of Catalonia.

“Prime Minister Rajoy wants the parliament of Catalonia to stop being a democratic parliament, and we will not allow this to happen,” Forcadell said in a televised speech, adding that Madrid’s move to fire Catalonia’s government and force a new election is a “coup” and an “attack against democracy.”

“This is why we want to send to the citizens of this country a message of firmness and hope. We commit today, after the most serious attack against the Catalan institutions since they were restored, to the defense of the sovereignty of the parliament of Catalonia,” she said.

Forcadell’s statement came as about half a million people took to the streets of Barcelona to support the results of a controversial referendum earlier this month, which gave regional leader Carles Puigdemont the mandate to declare independence from Madrid.

Municipal police said around 450,000 people welcomed a call by Puigdemont and other secessionist leaders and rallied on Barcelona’s large Paseo de Gracia boulevard and nearby streets. Puigdemont joined the rally to the shouts of “President, President” by protesters who waved Catalonia’s yellow, red and blue Estelada separatist flag. He was later to address the protesters in a televised speech.

Demonstrators said they would defy Madrid’s measures to stop Catalonia from breaking away. “The Catalans are completely disconnected from Spanish institutions, and particularly anything to do with the Spanish state,” said a protester.

“They can destroy the government, they can destroy everything they want but we’ll keep on fighting,” said another.

Puigdemont was supposed to declare Catalonia independence from Madrid last Tuesday, when he attended a special parliament session in Barcelona. However, he suspended the declaration to allow talks with Madrid. The Spanish government has rejected talks as it views the entire independence process as constitutionally illegal.

Source: Presstv

Two prominent Catalan independence leaders have been sent to jail by the order of Spain’s National Court over suspicion of crimes of sedition.

On Monday, Jordi Sanchez of the Catalan National Assembly and Jordi Cuixart of Omnium Cultural were detained while under investigation over their role in demonstrations against police ahead of a banned independence referendum.

Both of them are accused of heading protests in Barcelona on September 20, while police were attempting to round up Catalonian officials ahead of the vote.

They are both currently being held without bail and are facing a possible up to 15 years in prison.

Meanwhile, the spokesman for Catalonia’s separatist government has denounced the ruling as provocation by the Spanish government, and the Catalan National Assembly called on people across the region to go on strike on Tuesday.

“Spain jails Catalonia’s civil society leaders for organizing peaceful demonstrations. Sadly, we have political prisoners again,” said Catalonia’s regional head Carles Puigdemont.

Last week, the Catalan leader signed a symbolic declaration of independence following the referendum but held off on officially declaring independence. Puigdemont claimed that 90 percent of the voters in the referendum had backed secession, but the turnout had been put at only 43 percent.

Spain has been in turmoil since the separatist government in Catalonia held a disputed referendum on October 1.

The Spanish government went out of its way to avert the referendum, raiding venues and confiscating ballot boxes and papers, arresting officials, and even installing police forces at sites where polling stations managed to get set up to

physically remove voters. Security forces used batons and rubber bullets to disperse crowds of voters, wounding nearly 900 people.

Source: Presstv

Police forces in the Spanish city of Barcelona have surrounded the regional parliament compound hours ahead of a potential declaration of independence of Catalonia.

The Mossos d’Esquadra, Catalonia’s regional police force, said on its Twitter page on Tuesday that security measures were imposed around the park where the parliament is located as there was the risk that opponents and supporters of Catalonia’s independence campaign could approach the area during a planned session in which regional leaders may declare Catalonia’s independence from Spain.

“For security reasons, Parc de la Ciutadella is closed to the public today,” said the short statement, without elaborating.

Several blue police vans were parked outside of the parliament building while metal barriers were set up at the entrance to the park.

A police spokesman said authorities hoped to “prevent any situation that would put pressure on parliamentary activity.”

“We are trying to avoid these situations, both on the part of pro-unity protesters as well as by groups of radical separatists,” he said.

The spokesman added that “a group of people forced their way into the park and threw objects against the parliament building” on Sunday, when hundreds of thousands of people staged a massive rally in Barcelona against the independence drive.

Separatist organizations in Catalonia have called on supporters of independence to gather in front of the parliament “to support and defend the declaration of independence.”

The calls come as Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont could finally declare independence during the Tuesday parliamentary session, more than a week after a controversial referendum in which around 90 percent from a population of 2.3 million voters, less than half of those eligible to vote in Catalonia, endorsed the independence campaign. The vote came amid some unprecedented tensions on the streets as more than 900 people were injured in clashes with the police.

The Spanish government in Madrid has labeled the entire process of seeking referendum in Catalonia as illegal, including the referendum and the Tuesday vote in the regional parliament.

The political crisis, the most serious for Spain in nearly four decades, have hugely affected the economically-vibrant Catalonia, as major companies and banks have either moved their headquarters out of Barcelona or have announced plans to do so if regional leaders declare independence.

Source: Presstv