Spain's King Felipe VI has spoken out forcefully against Catalonia's independence drive, saying all Spaniards must respect each other and the law.

Spain is to hold a special Cabinet meeting at the weekend to activate measures to take control of Catalonia's semi-autonomous powers after the region's leader threatened to explicitly declare independence if no talks were offered.

Spain's two main parties have agreed to renegotiate laws governing autonomy amid Catalonia's independence bid, Madrid's opposition leader said.

Catalan separatists called for international mediation with the Spanish government.

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has told the country's National Court he did not know anything about the ruling Popular Party's accounting practices when a corrupt scheme allegedly helped fund it.

Thousands rallied in Madrid on Saturday to support a no-confidence vote against conservative prime minister Mariano Rajoy brought by the far-left Podemos party.

Spain's Parliament has voted to approve acting prime minister Mariano Rajoy's bid to form a new minority government, putting an end to the country's 10-month political deadlock.

Spain's conservative Popular Party has signed a deal with the business-friendly Ciudadanos party that could pave the way for the formation of a new government and avert a possible third round of elections.

The Spanish government has said it failed to meet its budget deficit target last year despite a recovering economy.

Spain’s El Mundo newspaper has called on Queen Letizia to explain leaked text messages that show her supporting a prominent business executive caught up in a scandal involving alleged corporate credit-card abuse.

The leader of Spain’s opposition Socialists has said that he will not support any effort by the acting prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, to stay in his post via a coalition or a minority government.

The leader of Spain’s opposition Socialists has said he will not support any effort by acting PM Mariano Rajoy to stay in his post via a coalition or minority government.

Spain’s general election has created circumstances that may have a particular relevance to us over the coming months. Essentially, the country’s political map was redrawn and the monopoly of the old, established parties has been, for the moment at least, sidelined.

With Barcelona and the Catalans on the precipice of achieving independence,

The regional parliament of Catalonia approved a plan to set up a roadmap for independence from Spain by 2017, in defiance of central government.

Here’s a briefing on some of the stories and issues highlighted on irishexaminer.com today.

Hundreds of thousands of people marched through Madrid today in a show of strength by a fledgling radical leftist party, which hopes to emulate the success of Greece’s Syriza party in the Spanish general election later this year.

Spanish police searched for possible explosives at the Madrid headquarters of the ruling conservative Popular Party after a man rammed his car into the office entrance.

Spain’s King Juan Carlos has announced he will abdicate in favour of his more popular son so that fresh royal blood can rally the nation.

A local Spanish politician with the country’s ruling party has been shot dead on a walkway near her home and two women have been taken into custody.

Tens of thousands of people marched to Spain’s parliament today to protest against the conservative government’s new law that aims to restrict abortion, allowing the practice only in cases of rape or serious risk to health.

Portuguese voters have handed the coalition government a heavy defeat in local elections, apparently reflecting widespread public opposition to austerity measures and workplace reforms following the country’s €78bn bail-out.

Spanish opposition leaders yesterday urged Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to resign over an alleged secret payments scandal.

Spain’s bailed-out Bankia has posted a full-year net loss of €19.2bn, the biggest ever suffered by a Spanish company, after the lender cleaned up its balance sheets of bad property loans and other risky investments.

Spain’s Prime Minister has denied reports alleging that he and members of his governing Popular Party accepted or made under-the-table payments.

Pressure is growing on Spanish conservative prime minister Mariano Rajoy to explain how a former party treasurer amassed €22m in a Swiss bank account.

Voters in the economically powerful region of Catalonia have punished the leader who made a referendum over breaking away from Spain a central plank of his campaign, seeing his party’s majority reduced by a dozen seats.

French President Francois Hollande’s Cabinet pushed ahead with a controversial bill today that could see gay marriage legalised early next year, defying vocal opposition in the majority Catholic country from religious leaders, the rural heartland and the conservative opposition.

Voters in Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy’s north western home region of Galicia have given their support to his handling of the economy, but those in the turbulent Basque region handed a major victory to nationalist and separatist parties.

Almost 4.5 million people will go to the polls today in regional elections in Spain’s turbulent Basque region and in north western Galicia.

Spain’s government was hit by the country’s financial crisis on two fronts today as thousands of protesters enraged with austerity cutbacks and tax hikes marched on parliament while its borrowing costs increased in an auction of its debt.

A Spanish lawmaker’s hardship tale of barely scraping by on €5,100 a month has prompted a deluge of derision in recession-hit Spain.

Spain’s conservative government has provoked a storm among women’s groups with plans to tighten abortion laws that make the procedure illegal in cases where the foetus is deformed.

Recession-plagued Spain unveiled austerity measures yesterday designed to slash €65bn from the public deficit by 2014 as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy yielded to EU pressure to try to avoid a full state bailout.

Barack Obama’s announcement that he supports gay marriage has boosted the hopes of rights groups around the world that other leaders will follow his example.

Spain is facing a general strike today as unions challenge a conservative government not yet 100 days old.

Spain said today that its budget deficit for 2011 has come in at 8.5% of GDP, even worse than the new conservative government's own already pessimistic prediction.

Hundreds of thousands of protesters have been marching throughout Spain today in the first large-scale show of anger over new labour reforms that make it easier for companies to fire workers and pull out of collective bargaining agreements.

Spain’s Supreme Court convicted judge Baltasar Garzon in an illegal wiretapping case, crushing the career of a man who won world renown for pursuing human rights abuses.

Spain is to reform its abortion law to make parental permission mandatory for 16- and 17-year-olds seeking to end pregnancies.

Spain is to reform its abortion law to make parental permission mandatory for 16- and 17-year-olds looking to end pregnancies.