European Parliament
Mayol i Raynal (Verts/ALE ).
(FR)
Mr President, I would like to thank the Commissioner for her response to Mr Vallvé. I would also like to voice my support for his request regarding national teams, although I did understand your message, Commissioner.
As regards cultural diversity, Parliament has adopted several resolutions, one of which I hold particularly dear: that of 1989, which recognises that the Catalan language has a somewhat special role among the minority languages and which called on the Commission to publish a number of fundamental texts in our language, Catalan.
My predecessor in this role, Mr Gorka Knörr, who is currently the Vice-President of the Basque Parliament – whom I am replacing for that reason – had raised the question of Basque. Why does Catalan enjoy minor status as a recognised language and why can Basque not have the same status?
Therefore, at the very moment when the Spanish authorities have shut down the only Basque newspaper,
Egunkaria
, I would like to ask you the reason for this difference in the status of Basque and Catalan.

