CATALAN president Quim Torra has compared the independence movements in his country and Scotland after the PM rejected Nicola Sturgeon's request for a Section 30 order to be granted.
The First Minister wrote to the UK Government following last month's election results, in which pro-independence MPs won 48 of Scotland's 59 seats, asking for the necessary powers to hold indyref2 to be devolved.
This morning Boris Johnson published a letter outlining why he would not be granting Scotland the powers to hold such a vote.
Torra, a former lawyer and journalist, took to Twitter to compare the Prime Minister's approach with that of Madrid's.
“It is not politically sustainable for any Westminster government to stand in the way of the right of the people of Scotland to decide their own future and to seek to block the clear democratic mandate for an independence referendum.” Només cal canviar Westminster per Madrid. https://t.co/38NHvSf4jf
— Quim Torra i Pla (@QuimTorraiPla) January 14, 2020
Torra referred to Sturgeon's response to the Section 30 rejection, quoting: “It is not politically sustainable for any Westminster government to stand in the way of the right of the people of Scotland to decide their own future and to seek to block the clear democratic mandate for an independence referendum.”
The president added: "Només cal canviar Westminster per Madrid."
That means: "All you have to do is change Westminster to Madrid."
Scotland and Catalonia have shown each other support over the years over independence.
Last year, when a number of pro-independence Catalan figures were jailed for their roles in the 2017 referendum, Sturgeon said she was "appalled" by the move.
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