A new president of Catalonia, Joaquim “Quim” Torra, has been voted in, ending months of political stalemate and legal wrangles over the formation of the region’s government. The former president handpicked Mr Torra as candidate after the Spanish judiciary blocked his own attempt to be invested from abroad. “Our president is Puigdemont,” Mr Torra said. But the opposition accused Mr Torra of extremism, pointing to opinions he had expressed in the past on social networks and in articles. Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy is expected to withdraw direct rule once Mr Torra has formally taken office, in the coming days.

Source: The Irish Times May 14, 2018 13:18 UTC