The Congress of Deputies has once again made it clear to the Spanish government that it does not have a majority to legislate. The Moncloa takes another defeat in the Spanish lower house, which has struck down the royal decree-law to regulate pressure groups or interest groups, popularly known as lobbies. These are groups that seek to influence the legislative agenda of politics by weaving ties with political parties, parliamentary groups in the Congress of Deputies or the Senate, or the Spanish government itself.

Carlos Parry is president of the Professional Association of Institutional Relations (APRI) and does not hide his displeasure. He talks to ARA in a cafe near the Congress of Deputies, for which this professional sector has been waiting "fifteen years" – he says – for regulation on the activity of lobbyists in Spain. In his opinion, clear rules of the game would be positive for both sides: for lobbyists, who would know their scope of action, and for active politicians, as it would give them legal security when deciding whether or not to receive any company that wants its interests to be taken into account when legislating. This newspaper's interview with Parry has been arranged following the Zapatero case, but the conversation goes further and addresses a general reflection on the sector.