Mariano Rajoy: 'complete striptease' of Spanish banks means lenders will not need more cash The ECB's bond-buying plan, unveiled by president Mario Draghi in September, is aimed at easing the eurozone's debt crisis through unlimited purchases of short term debt. However, Spain's government has so far resisted a bail-out request because of the harsh conditions that are a pre-requisite for the central bank to consider bond purchases. Mr Rajoy's conservative Popular party has faced growing criticism and a wave of general strikes over its handling of the economy. Last March, the country unveiled its most austere budget in democratic history in an attempt to slash its budget deficit. The unemployment rate in Spain, at 26.6pc, is the highest in the industrialised world, and is predicted to soar to almost 27pc this year, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Mr Rajoy acknowledged that unemployment remained Spain's "most important problem," but insisted that the economy had turned a corner. "Recent job losses have taken place in the real estate sector, in the financial sector and in the public sector," he says. But in other sectors of the economy jobs have not been lost. So the labour reform has started to bear fruit," he told the FT. 2014 will be a year of economic growth and growth in jobs, and the second half of 2013 will also be a bit better, as long as there are no turbulences in the financial markets. Mr Rajoy also said that he was willing to discuss a new financial compact between Madrid and the autonomous regions, including Catalonia, where there has been a surge in separatist sentiment, although he repeated his warning that the government would not tolerate a move towards Catalan secession. The unity of Spain goes back more than five centuries. This is the oldest country in Europe," he said. We are working towards greater integration and not the opposite.