The Spanish government’s representative in Catalonia has apologised to those injured during police efforts to stop Sunday’s independence referendum.

But Enric Millo blamed the Catalan government for holding an illegal vote.

Meanwhile the government in Madrid has issued a decree making it easier for companies to move their headquarters away from Catalonia.

A Catalan minister told the BBC his government would go ahead with an independence debate in parliament.

“Parliament will discuss, parliament will meet,” said Catalan foreign affairs chief Raül Romeva. “Every attempt the Spanish government has used to impede things to happen, they have been demonstrated completely not only useless but counter-productive,” he told the BBC in English.