Catalan leader calls on Madrid to agree to independence referendum

Catalan leader calls on Madrid to agree to independence referendum Reuters By Isla Binnie and Belén Carreño MADRID (Reuters) - Catalan leader Quim Torra relaunched a campaign to split his region from Spain on Tuesday, calling on the central government in Madrid to agree to a referendum on independence and rebuffing a vote that could only offer greater autonomy. Torra set out his separatist roadmap at a lecture entitled "Our Moment" on Tuesday evening, almost five months after he was elected as regional head to replace Carles Puigdemont, who fled to Brussels last year after Madrid removed him from office. Spain's new socialist prime minister, Pedro Sanchez, has taken a softer line towards Catalonia since taking over from Mariano Rajoy, a conservative, in June, but ruled out a vote on independence after a banned and chaotic referendum last Oct The post Catalan leader calls on Madrid to agree to independence referendum appeared first on Firstpost. FirstPost Unsubscribe from these notifications or sign in to manage your Email Applets.