Spain has a Government

Finally on Tuesday, in a second round, Spain’s parliament chose Socialist leader Pedro Sánchez to form a new government, ending almost a year of political limbo for the euro-zone’s fourth-largest economy. The vote was impossibly tight, with Sánchez and his coalition partner from Unidas Podemos Pablo Iglesias taking 167 votes against 165, with 18 abstentions.

Much of the rhetoric and the pressure concerned the issue of the Catalonian call for independence, which we are told elsewhere is a minority view in the region. The right-wing parties in Spain (including the ‘centrist’ Ciudadanos) are intent on applying ‘Article 155’ – direct rule from Madrid – on the region, and their hostility against Sánchez was apparent as he was obliged to persuade the ERC to abstain. (Ciudadanos could have removed the Catalonian problem by themselves abstaining, but that’s politics).

During the weekend’s intemperate first investiture debate, the PP leader Pablo Casado branded Sánchez as a ‘sociopath’. The Vox leader Santiago Abascal wasn’t any friendlier, calling Sánchez a ‘traitor’ (here).

From The Guardian here: ‘...The PSOE and Unidas Podemos have promised their joint government will increase the minimum wage, raise taxes on higher earners and big companies, and overhaul some of the labour changes introduced eight years ago when the conservative People’s party (PP) was in power...’. From The Corner comes the balanced review ‘The new all or nothing government for Spain’ here.

‘Sánchez also had a message for the opposition parties that have been questioning the legitimacy of the coalition government. “The first principal of a democracy is to accept the result at the polls,” he said. “There are only two options: a progressive coalition or more deadlock for Spain.”’.

From El País in English: ‘What can he push through parliament?’ It says, ‘Sánchez’ term in office is likely to come under all kinds of threats, right from the first days. The two-part investiture debate that took place over the weekend and concluded on Tuesday has only confirmed fears of a highly charged atmosphere in Spain’s lower house of parliament going forward...’.

The program includes tax-hikes for the wealthy (a professional who earns 12,000€ a month is unlikely to take off for the Bahamas because he’ll be paying an extra 20€, says the ElDiario.es here while LibreMercado calls it ‘the highest tax hikes in living history’).

The pressure on the PSOE (or one of the satellite parties such as Teruel Existe: ‘there’s no chance of me changing my vote’) to find a chink in their armour, someone who was prepared to break rank and vote against Sánchez for president, was tremendous (here and here).  Indeed, the Coalición Canaria leader Ana Oramas finally defied her party’s decision to abstain (for reasons best known to herself) and voted against Sánchez.

What is terrifying (frankly) for the conservatives, industry and the church is the prospect of the first ministers from outside the PP/PSOE machine – five of them, no less, from Unidas Podemos:  Pablo Iglesias (vice-president), together with Irene Montero, Yolanda Díaz, Alberto Garzón (the IU leader) and Manuel Castells.

The thing is, if this wobbly coalition falls under its own weight of improbability, the fractious right will take the country and rule for a long time to come.