Salvador Illa: “We Will Help Take in Ceuta’s Minors, but Not Naively”

Catalonia will help respond to the crisis involving migrant minors in Ceuta, but Salvador Illa insists that solidarity must have limits. “We will help, but without naivety,” the Catalan president said in an interview with Catalunya Ràdio.

Illa said Catalonia would provide as much assistance as it could, but not at the cost of worsening the situation for those providing it. “You can help up to the point where you are not left in a worse condition than the person receiving the help,” he said. He noted that Catalonia was already cooperating on the ground through its vaccination official and accused the opposition of trying to extract political advantage from the situation.

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We will help, but without naivety.

“Catalonia is one of the most supportive autonomous communities, without preaching as much and acting more,” Illa said, referring to statements from the People’s Party and Vox. At the same time, he defended Sánchez against criticism over the prime minister’s holiday during the crisis. “It is very easy to say on Monday how Sunday’s match should have been played. The president was always connected,” he said.

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You can help up to the point where you are not left in a worse condition than the person receiving the help.

Illa ruled himself out as a successor to Sánchez and cast doubt on an early general election. He said the issue had less importance than people thought, arguing that voters could distinguish between different elections. If Sánchez carries out his stated intention to complete the parliamentary term, Illa said, general elections would follow the municipal elections.

The Catalan leader also praised socialist activists’ support for Sánchez and contrasted it with what he called Alberto Núñez Feijóo’s weak leadership in the PP, where he said Feijóo shares influence with Madrid’s regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso. Ayuso recently criticized the proposed regional financing reform backed by the Catalan Socialists, accusing Catalonia of maintaining costly “little empires” and seeking to make Madrid residents pay for its parties.

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It is very easy to say on Monday how Sunday’s match should have been played. The president was always connected.

Illa responded with a series of sharp remarks. “Do not mess with Catalonia or the Catalans,” he said, while also extending a hand to the people of Madrid. He called for a pause from teachers during the strike planned at the start of the school year and repeated his support for legally limiting speculative home purchases.

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Do not mess with Catalonia or the Catalans.