Catalan government mulling calling snap election: pro-independence party CUP

MADRID (Reuters) - The Catalan government is considering calling a snap election, pro-independence party CUP politician Carles Riera said on Tuesday, though he added that the far-left party would oppose such a move.

"The regional elections are a weapon to cancel the Oct.1 (referendum) and the will of the majority of Catalonia," Riera told a news conference.

Secessionists in Catalonia say that a banned independence vote held on Oct. 1 - which drew only a 43 percent turnout and was mostly shunned by Catalans who wish to remain in Spain - has accorded them a mandate to claim statehood.

(Reporting by Julien Toyer; Editing by Paul Day)