Spain to begin process of taking control of Catalonia's powers

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.

Catalan president Carles Puigdemont's warning came in a letter to Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy with minutes to spare before the expiry of a deadline set by the central government for him to backtrack on his calls for secession.