<…> Spain and Catalan region have always been in disagreement and taxation is one of the reason why they never agree.
True. A recurring mantra used in Catalonia is “Spain robs us” (“España nos roba”), which is used as one of the core reasons for wanting to gain independence from Spain. Want it or not, that is how the tax games often plays-out, based upon the principal of solidary, whereby the richer regions contribute to the poorer regions from the point of view of a net tax balance.
That is quite a common principle, and taking it to an extreme, Barcelona’s Sarria neighbourhood could state that Nou Barris steals from them, since Nous Barris is one of the poorest neighbourhoods in Barcelona. Or within one same neighbourhood one could state that the unemployed that have a government aid of some sort, are “stealing” from taxpayers within that neighbourhood. It’s all down to how self-entered one is.
<…> For months now many Catalans have been taking their savings out of Catalonia.
All that money goes is deposited in Spanish banks outside Catalonia.<…>
And rightly so. Having your lifetime savings in a Banc on Catalan soil is a risk that is not necessary to run. I know plenty of people who have moved their assets to Madrid, Valencia or Zaragoza, and plan on never returning them to a banc on Catalan soil.
During the days that built up to, and followed the (failed) declaration of independence by the Catalan government, the queues at banks were enormous, and many people were afraid that their assets could be seized overnight. Fortunately, events have not gone that far, but this is not a single episode show, and the show does go on (and on, and on…).
