Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy in Dublin, March 7, 2014.
Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy on Sunday issued a firm rebuke to Catalan nationalists planning to hold a referendum on independence, saying he won't allow "anyone to break the law".
"National sovereignty lies with the Spanish people, and what happens to Spain will be decided by everyone," he said in a speech marking his return to the political arena after the summer holidays.
"The head of the Spanish government cannot allow anyone to break the law and I will not let it happen," he told members of his conservative Popular Party (PP) gathered in the northwestern region of Galicia.
The Catalan regional president, Artur Mas, has called for a referendum on independence on November 9, although Madrid has branded the planned vote unconstitutional.
Mas, who leads a conservative nationalist coalition in the northeast Spanish region, has allied with left-leaning independents who also want to see a vote.
Famously proud of its culture and its Catalan language, the region has seen support for independence grow in recent years. With the population of 7.5 million creating 20 percent of the national wealth, that sentiment has been exacerbated by anger over the Spanish economic crisis.
Relations between Mas and the central government remain delicate, with Madrid saying the 1978 Constitution makes the project "illegal".
The comments on Sunday were not the first time Rajoy has dismissed the referendum, calling Catalan moves to split from Spain "nonsense" earlier this week.
On Monday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she backed Madrid in the row, calling Rajoy's arguments about greater union and integration "logical".
Pro-independence campaigners are expecting a huge turnout on September 11 when the region marks its "national" day.
This year the celebration comes one week before another European region with independent ambitions -- Scotland -- votes on whether it will remain part of the United Kingdom or go it alone.
Short link: