Spanish government denies spying on Catalan leaders

Calls for investigation into claims senior independence figures were targeted using powerful spyware

As a leading Catalan politician renewed calls for an investigation, Spain's Socialist-led coalition government has emphatically denied any involvement in the use of spyware to target senior members of the Catalan independence movement, saying: This government doesn't spy on anyone."

A joint investigation by the Guardian and El Pais has determined that the mobile phones of at least five members of the regional independence movement - including the speaker of the Catalan parliament - were targeted using powerful software its makers claim is sold only to governments.