The Spanish government is taking another step toward fulfilling its promise, made in the wake of the Santos Cerdán case, to eradicate corruption in institutions and businesses. The Council of Ministers on Tuesday gave its first approval (meaning the legislative process has barely begun) to the draft organic law on public integrity, which, among other things, tightens controls on donations to political parties, as well as increasing the penalties of disqualification and bans on participating in public procurement for companies involved. In addition to parties and businesses, the focus is also on the public administration. This measure stems from an agreement between the two partners in Spain's coalition government, the PSOE and Sumar, after the name of the former number three of the PSOE was implicated in an alleged corruption case. In fact, in parallel with this legislation, Pedro Sánchez's government has approved the law on interest groups or lobbyists (currently being processed in Congress). The open administration law (pending return to the Council of Ministers) and the criminal procedure law (also in parliamentary process). All of these, together with Tuesday's reform, complete the Anti-Corruption Plan announced by Sánchez last summerGovernment sources explain. The underlying, and quite ambitious, objective is to prevent the misuse of public funds and ensure that every stolen cent is returned to the public treasury.

Pedro Sánchez's government is increasingly dependent on the courts. Anxiety is spreading among the Socialist ranks, especially after a week that has brought two new developments: five arrests These events have brought to light two new cases—which remain secret—and a Civil Guard report that once again implicates José Luis Ábalos. These are ongoing investigations into issues that strike at the heart of the Spanish president's political roadmap and the origins of his rise to power. Of the five arrested, the National Court has released former Socialist Party member Leire Díez, Vicente Fernández Guerrero, former president of SEPI (State Holding Company for Industrial Participations), and Basque businessman Antxon Alonso, owner of the company Servinabar and a friend of Santos Cerdán, former PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party) organizational secretary. All five were released with precautionary measures (passport confiscation and periodic court appearances) after the prosecution did not request their imprisonment.

Last June, theCivil Guard report that implicated Santos Cerdán in an alleged corruption scheme It shocked the PSOEFour days after the case broke, Pedro Sánchez convened the party leadership and announced a series of measures to answer: among others, their appearance in CongressThe expulsion of José Luis Ábalos from the party and the creation of a parliamentary commission to "uncover the truth" about the Koldo case. The request, registered the following day by the parliamentary group, argued that the "seriousness of the events and conduct" reflected in the UCO report "demanded" a parliamentary investigation because it was "essential" to know the facts "in depth."

The 180 meters separating the Supreme Court from the National Court have never seemed so short. Last Thursday, while José Luis Ábalos faced the possibility of being sent to prison by Leopoldo Puente in the case concerning the purchase of face masks – as It ended up happening—Víctor de Aldama testified before Ismael Moreno regarding contracts awarded by the Canary Islands government during the pandemic; an alleged corruption scheme that has led to multiple parallel investigations with interconnected links. So much so, that even the lawyers involved are still unclear about the number of ongoing cases and their scope. We're taking it one step at a time.

The National Court judge investigating the Koldo García case, Ismael Moreno, has requested that the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) provide him with a list of all cash payments made between 2017 and 2024. The magistrate wants the Socialists to submit the documentation within a maximum of 10 days. "The PSOE wishes to clarify that we are not under investigation in this case, and that our commitment to transparency, as well as our cooperation with the justice system, is absolute. We will provide the court with the requested documentation," stated Socialist sources. Weeks ago, the party headquarters in Ferraz specifically provided details of cash payments made to José Luis Ábalos, Santos Cerdán, Koldo García, and the party's Organizational Secretary. The judge is acting at the request of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, which seeks to dispel doubts about the income of the former Minister of Transport and former PSOE Organizational Secretary, as well as his former advisor. The public prosecutor's office speaks of a possible criminal offense ranging "from money laundering" to a possible embezzlement committed against the PSOE (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party). According to the ruling of the National Court magistrate, the investigations carried out in the Supreme Court regarding the Koldo case do not "sufficiently clarify" the origin of the cash that Ábalos received, which appears in one of the reports submitted by the Central Operational Unit (UCO).

When Ferrovial announced its intention to leave Spain, Nadia Calviño, then Minister of Economy, criticized the decision, arguing, among other things, that Rafael del Pino's construction company had grown so much "thanks to public works projects and the contributions of every Spaniard over decades." However, Ferrovial is not the only exception. All the major Spanish construction companies have grown in the shadow of public contracts, including Acciona, the multinational founded and controlled by the Entrecanales family (which owns 55.12% of the share capital), and which this week is once again at the center of the storm. of the Cerdán caseThis has cost it almost 7% of its market value in the last five days.

The People's Party (PP) long ago decided to sacrifice the Senate's value as a chamber of territorial representation and a second reading body, turning it into a sounding board for their opposition to Pedro Sánchez. That's why they thought it was a good idea to summon the Spanish Prime Minister to testify before a commission on the Koldo case in a room they completely control. But once again, and this has happened several times now, the PP has failed, and Pedro Sánchez has emerged unscathed from the lamentable spectacle that unfolded in the Senate.

The English weekly The Economist published an article on Thursday calling for Spanish President Pedro Sanchez to "step aside" following the cases of corruption that affect their environment. The London-based outlet asserts that Spanish democracy is experiencing a state of "political paralysis" following the indictment of the last two PSOE organizing secretaries and needs renewal. For this reason, it proposes two options: the Socialists appoint a "new leader" or bring forward the elections.

The Koldo corruption case, also known as the Ábalos or Cerdán case, has been causing a sensation since it became known: those involved or their relatives have already suffered two robberies in just one month. The plot involving former Transport Minister and former PSOE organizational secretary José Luis Ábalos, his former advisor Koldo García, and his successor as number three in the party, Santos Cerdán, has already suffered two high-profile robberies, the latest at Ábalos's home in Madrid this morning, following another burglary at his home in late June.

The outbreak of the Montoro case brings together all the immutable ingredients of the traditional manger, stripping away every strand of corruption that is more systemic than systematic, and shaking the political-emotional counter to the provisional benefit of Vox. As always, fashions pass, and only the rubble remains, amidst an oblivion that only cracks when a new mess erupts. Then we look in the rearview mirror, remember where we came from, and wonder what the hell has never changed. In memory corner, regarding the judicial state of affairs, we must remember that three former ministers were convicted and imprisoned from the Aznar regime—Rodrigo Rato, Eduardo Zaplana, Jaume Matas—and that others were also investigated, with cases closed or narrowly acquitted. From the Felipe González administration, with a firm judicial signature, the following were convicted, among others: a Minister of the Interior, the party's finance coordinator, several bankers, the brother of Vice President Alfonso Guerra, and CESID sewer errand boys—and an entire Minister of Defense, Nar, resigned, all in the Royal Household. From Mariano Rajoy's governments, Montoro is currently in the air, but Fernández Díaz is awaiting trial, where he is facing a 15-year prison sentence for patriot While his Minister of Health was already convicted, for profit, in the Gürtel case. In the preliminary indictment phase alone, three people have already left Sánchez's Peugeot—two of whom were party organizational secretaries—and now only one remains at the wheel, named Pedro. That's how things stand. As if we forget every day that the flagship of the series is called Juan Carlos I and still lives like a king in Abu Dhabi.

In the midst of a whirlwind of information about the political developments and consequences of the Santos Cerdán case, the plot surrounding Leire Díez seems to have been left in the background. But the name of the former socialist activist, whose audio recordings were leaked trying to uncover information about the Civil Guard, is appearing in the headlines due to the thread that links her to the former number 3 of the PSOE. In the last few hours, it has also become known that a Madrid court has initiated an investigation against her for the first time, according to media outlets such as The Independent and The reason and sources from the Madrid High Court of Justice (TSJM) have confirmed to ARA.

After dropping a stinking bombshell in Congress about brothels and Pedro Sánchez's late father-in-law, Alberto Núñez Feijóo went on strike in Barcelona to promise funding for Catalonia. He did so while the Spanish government and ERC continued negotiations on the same matter, and the possibility (later denied by Junts) of a meeting between the aforementioned Pedro Sánchez and Carles Puigdemont appeared on screen. Feijóo's proposal on the financing of Catalonia contained no fiscal balance studies, not even announcements of millions in funding. It was merely a proposal in a gaseous state that Feijóo himself imagined taking shape "at a table" and not "in a room." Feijóo's imaginary table had a positive connotation, one of transparent and fair negotiation in Spain. The room, on the other hand, functioned as an obscure reference, because it echoed the room where the photo of Puigdemont and Santos Cerdán was taken on the day of their first meeting, which in fact wasn't to negotiate funding but rather the amnesty. It doesn't matter, because everything ends up under the heading "things the Catalans are asking for," demands and negotiations that are ruthlessly shredded and smeared in the media and on junk journalism networks, turning them into an amorphous and illegible mass.

Yesterday's debate in Congress ended just as we explained. Sánchez saved his position, but lost face: the investiture parties told him they'd still support him, but that his time on the neck wouldn't last forever.

The National Court has taken action and summoned former Adif president Isabel Pardo de Vera and former Director General of Highways Javier Herrero as suspects in the Koldo case. They are due to testify on July 21 at 11:00 a.m. after the Supreme Court found evidence of their involvement in the alleged scheme of irregular awarding contracts, according to a ruling by Judge Ismael Moreno.

Remove from public works those construction companies that have been implicated in corruption, whether through bribery, bid rigging, or other malpractices. Alleged kickbacks surrounding the last two PSOE organizational secretaries, José Luis Ábalos and Santos Cerdán, and the former advisor to the former, Koldo García. If Pedro Sánchez takes up the challenge of these proposals—it is expected that this Wednesday, coinciding with the plenary session in the Congress of Deputies, the Spanish president will announce measures to combat corruption—it is necessary to keep in mind that Spain is not starting from scratch regarding the possibility of applying this veto to certain companies when accessing public contracts. Inspired by European directives, it already includes this penalty. In fact, the European Commission is examining its directives and is expected to release its analysis and, therefore, possible modifications in the last quarter of the year. The Spanish government is also seeking to strengthen its capacity to carry out its work ... The Spanish government is also seeking to strengthen its capacity to carry out its work. For example, if a company has been sanctioned for misrepresentation of competition, the National Commission of Markets and Competition (CNMC) intervenes. Since 2023, it can set the duration and scope of the ban based on criteria related to competition between companies, and "the aim is to increase security." This is the body responsible for ensuring the defense of competition in the State.

A key piece in the arrival of the Volkswagen battery plant in Sagunto and in the maintenance of the Ford car factory in AlmussafesThese are the two main political milestones of the new secretary of organization of the PSOE, Rebeca Torró (Ontinyent, 1981), a Valencian leader who stands out for her discretion, capacity for work, and loyalty to her party, above and beyond her political families. Even though this loyalty caused her to lose some friends.

This weekend, we'll only hear about the PSOE and the PP. Both parties are meeting. Ultimately, they're meeting for the same reason: to give their leader one last chance. The Socialists are holding a federal committee to make internal changes that demonstrate that Pedro Sánchez has reacted to the atomic bombshell of the corruption charges against Ábalos and Cerdán. And the PP is holding its last-chance congress in Feijóo: if it doesn't win the next elections, it can return to Galicia.

Pedro Sánchez's new ally at Ferraz will speak Catalan. Valencian Socialist Rebeca Torró, Jordi Hereu's deputy in the Ministry of Industry and Tourism as Secretary of State for Industry, will be the new PSOE organizational secretary, replacing the already dismissed Santos Cerdán. And the party's new spokesperson will be Montse Mínguez, from the PSC (Spanish Socialist Workers' Party), a rising star in Madrid, given that she is the second-in-command of the parliamentary group in Congress. The first changes were announced one day before the party's federal committee meeting, where the moves Sánchez has promised to shake up the leadership in the wake of the alleged corruption scandal must be approved. The PSOE's new organizational area has been expanded and will have three deputy positions—until now there was only one, held by Juanfran Serrano, who will presumably leave the executive branch—to provide counterbalances. By choosing female profiles, the party also aims to send a message of response to the known conversations between José Luis Ábalos and Koldo García about prostitutes. From now on, this practice will be punishable by expulsion from the party.

We look back at the fires in Segarra, Noguera and Urgell, which have caused two dead and that big column of smokeThey call it a pyrocumulus, generated by the fire itself and the heat. There's growing concern that the heat wave will dry everything out, but fortunately, a cooling off in temperatures and afternoon rain are on the way for half the country, and we hope this will be a welcome relief, in every sense.

The day after the imprisonment of former Socialist party organization secretary Santos Cerdán for alleged corruption, a tense face-to-face confrontation erupted in the Catalan Parliament: the leader of the Catalan People's Party (PP), Alejandro Fernández, attempted to link the president of the Generalitat (Catalan government), Salvador Illa, to the alleged irregularities in the purchase of the ballot box, which he called "unintentional." "He'll regret it," Illa said, addressing Fernández in a serious tone: "I reserve my right to act." Salvador Illa was outraged and declared that Fernández had made a "serious mistake." "What he said is completely false; he deserves the award for political fiction," he concluded, making it clear: "I don't even know who this person you mention is, nor have I spoken to him through any app or had any conversation with him. He's driven by the passions of some people," he retorted. However, the PP leader remained silent from his seat.