Laurence Dollimore
MARIANO RAJOY is set to secure another term as prime minister after socialist rivals PSOE agreed to abstain in the upcoming confidence vote, ending ten months of deadlock.
The country has been in limbo after two general elections in which no party won a majority and was on the verge of heading to the polls for a third time.
PSOE has decided its members of parliament will abstain in a confidence vote on Mr Rajoy due to be held before October 31, allowing him to form a government.
The Socialist’s decision was carried at a vote of 139 to 96, an indication of the deep divisions within the party, which has been embattled by a leadership challenge following the resignation of its head Pedro Sanchez.
Sanchez quit earlier this month over criticism of his insistence on voting against a Rajoy-led People’s Party (PP) government.
Sanchez’s bid to become prime minister with the support of anti-austerity party Podemos and a smattering of Catalan nationalists had already caused a very public split among in his party.
Despite meeting without a leader, party secretary Javier Fernandez has said PSOE will continue as the opposition to a new PP government.
Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias said the Socialists have effectively agreed to form a “grand coalition” with Mr Rajoy.
Tis is only a symbolic act. When it comes to the vote on the budget, then Rajoy needs a absolute not a relative majority. As PSOE has already announced they will stay in opposition, the vote on budget will fail. Therefore the EU sanctions remain on the table and the autonomius regions are not able to vote on their own budget as Rajoy cannot give advice for the regional debt limits without having his own central budget ready.
This news is almost as sad and mad as Brexit. Fingers back in the till and sneaky powers to influence the on-going Barcenas furore. A majority is not required for either of those moves.
Looking on the positive side, at least they will not be able to do anything too diabolical because everything will have to voted through on a case by case basis. It should mean 4 years of quiet, small, non-meddling govermnent without too many changes which is no bad thing. Look how well Spain has managed for the past 10 months without any government at all!