Opposition motion during General Policy Debate
On Wednesday 30 September 2026, Mònica Sales, parliamentary leader of Junts, announced the group will force a vote at Thursday’s plenary session of the Parliament of Catalonia to formally reprimand President Salvador Illa. The move comes during the final stage of the General Policy Debate (Debat de Política General), as reported by Racó Català and confirmed by El Confidencial and El País.
"He is the worst president of modern-day Catalonia,"
, Mònica Sales, Junts parliamentary leader Sales accused Illa of being "unfit" for office and described his government as an "enterprise of demolitions" dedicated to dismantling Catalan institutions. She claimed his administration has collapsed public transport, overburdened citizens with taxes, failed on housing, degraded healthcare and education, and undermined social cohesion.
Call for support from ERC and Comuns
Sales directly invited ERC and Comuns to back the reprimand motion, framing it as an opportunity to correct course. However, based on previous parliamentary behaviour, such as in October 2025 when both parties helped block a similar proposal from the Popular Party, according to Crónica Global, support appears unlikely. Without their backing, the motion is expected to fail. Junts also used the debate to present over 60 legislative proposals, including reducing income tax (IRPF) for middle and working classes, streamlining urban licensing, and increasing police presence through more Mossos d'Esquadra officers on patrol.
Criticism of Madrid ties and national representation
A central line of attack was Illa’s relationship with the Spanish government. Sales stated his influence in Madrid amounts to "nothing at all," accusing him of mobilising only to protect Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, but not lifting a finger to defend Catalonia. She criticised Illa’s visit to Extremadura on Catalonia’s National Day, saying he attempted to "Spanishise" the commemoration. Instead, she argued, he should have been in Perpignan defending La Bressola, the network supporting Catalan-language education in Northern Catalonia.
No official text of the reprimand motion has yet been published in the Parliament’s pending documents, though procedural rules allow for last-minute submissions. The final plenary session takes place Thursday, with outcomes expected by close of day.
Primary sources: govern.cat, eb.gencat.cat. Reported by elconfidencial.com, David Expósito J, europapress.es, elpais.com, 20minutos.es, elnacional.cat, larazon.es, en.ara.cat, Parlament de Catalunya, lavanguardia.com, es.ara.cat, Departament d'Edicions - Parlament de Catalunya, ara.cat, parlament.cat, Diari ARA, elperiodico.com, VilaWeb, Racó Català.
