The Spain Report
Original, independent news reporting & editorial analysis to help you understand a changing Spain, in English. Edited by @matthewbennett.
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Día 5: ¿el mandato democrático o el imperio de la ley?
Los acusados se niegan a contestar a las preguntas de Vox; el Rey dice que no se puede apelar a la democracia sin respetar la ley.
Day 5: a democratic mandate or the rule of law?
Defendants refuse to answer questions from Vox; the King says one may not appeal to democracy without respecting the rule of law.
Day 4: former regional ministers deny violence or crime, express doubts over…
Court allows Raul Romeva 20 minutes to talk about politics; Jordi Turull cannot recall many key details when asked by the prosecutor.
Days 1 + 2: the dark side, a collective defeat or the…
Defence teams say thousands of pages of evidence are out of reach at another court; prosecutor says the independence movement is not on trial.
Catalan Separatism
The trial of 12 Catalan separatist leaders begins on February 12 at the Supreme Court in Madrid. You can watch the live feed here.
Polls: Podemos plummets, Vox average now above 10%
GAD3 gives Pablo Iglesias his worst poll result since the last general election in 2016.
Analysis: King Felipe’s Christmas message suggests national fragility and a failure to…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Monarch talks about Constitution, Transition, coexistence, economy and young SpaniardsIf a newspaper editor somewhere in Spain wanted to be a bit cheeky this morning, he could get away with headlining “King warns against return to Civil War in Christmas
Analysis: how much trouble will there be at Friday’s cabinet meeting in…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Will the PM and his ministers get trapped in a separatist “rabbit warren”?Pedro Sánchez and his minority socialist government, only 84 out of 350 MPs in Congress,…
Analysis: are Catalan separatists really going to attempt a violent breakaway?
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Hunger strike, sabotage, calls for revolution and reckless unchecked protestsIn 1991, Slovenia fought a 10-day war with Serbia over its independence, as Yugoslavia…
Question: what do you feel when you read the news?
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Haven't done this for a while and always looking to improve. Wondering about why you read the news. Could you check the option that best describes your feelings…
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Analysis: after the elections in Andalusia, expect a lot more Vox in…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Abascal wins big and Pablo Iglesias declares an “anti-fascist alert”The Socialist Party (PSOE) lost 402,000 votes on Sunday night, its worst result ever in Andalusia. The Popular Party (PP) and Podemos (Adelante Andalucía) were not far behind, shedding 316,000
Podcast Conversation on Spain 7: William Chislett (public)
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Our guest this week is William Chislett, who first came to Spain as a correspondent for The Times in the 1970s and who now works with the Elcano Royal Institute.…
Analysis: Spain has one of the lowest rates of female homicide victims…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Rate and absolute figures continue to decline slowly for both men and women (Graphs below)The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime published a new document (pdf) this week on female homicide victims around the world, reporting that 50,000
Analysis: 43 years after the death of Franco, could Spain lead Europe…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: The rise of Vox in Spain should be another warning sign for EuropeMaybe it all began with the Holy Roman Empire. Maybe it is all traceable back to the Thirty Years…
ANALYSIS: 43 years after Franco's death, could Spain lead Europe forward?
The rise of Vox in Spain should be another warning sign for Brussels
Daily Spain Briefing: November 16, 2018
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Analysis: will Vox win any seats in parliament?
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Abascal is not Franco reborn but he needs to turn the media spotlight into votes State of the polls in Spain (November 2018)Two years ago, when Donald Trump won the…
Analysis: state of the polls in Spain
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: The black dotted line at 44% is the overall majority line in Spain, going by the modern historic record (PSOE 1982 48%, PSOE 1986 44%, PP 2000 44%, PP 2011 44%) The…
Analysis: Are 17 million British tourists ready not to come to Spain…
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: British companies and nationals in Spain are completely in the dark about the specific steps that will be needed to make Brexit work in the real worldLast week, the…
Podcast Conversation on Spain 4: James Badcock
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Join here at $10/month or more to listen to the full version.A good, long conversation on Spain for you today with James Badcock (@jpfbadcock), who writes for the…
Analysis: Supreme Court orders trial for jailed Catalan separatists
Official Post from Matthew Bennett: Will the Spanish government try to reduce the charges? Will Quim Torra really try to trash Catalonia after a guilty verdict?On Thursday, the Supreme Court ordered a…