The Congress of Deputies has been virtually inactive since general elections were called at the end of May. Although the legislature began the constitution of the Cortes on August 17, the Hemicycle has hosted only two plenary sessions so far: one to revise the regulations and introduce the use of the associated official languages, and the other to invest in Alberto Núñez Feijóo.
In addition, parliamentary committees have not yet been established, nor have government control sessions nor even a calendar of activities set for the coming months. Everything remains at a standstill until Pedro Sánchez obeys the order you received from the King to establish a government.
But the Popular Party has said enough. If “in 48 hours” the socialist Francina Armengol did not set a date for the Board of Spokespersons, the body where the groups organize parliamentary work, the PP would “take appropriate legal action”. This is what the popular group conveyed to the president of the Lower House this Wednesday through a letter it submitted to the Board.
The governing body of Congress, which was not convened last week, finally met this morning to discuss mayoral issues, such as Princess Leonor’s swearing in of the Constitution scheduled for next Wednesday in the Chamber. The four PP members of the Board attended this meeting with the hope that it would serve to unblock the Board of Spokespersons.
Even if it’s not like that, The president of the Congress, despite the interest of the popular people, refused to set the next meeting of this body, which has been paralyzed for more than a month and needs to solve important needs, such as demonstrations in front of Pedro’s Plenary Session. Sánchez, Fernando Grande Marlaska, or José Manuel Albares.
The PP considers that “the most basic rules of parliamentary control have been violated” and maintains “that it is impossible that since the Constitution of the Parliament, the Board of Speakers has met only two times: “on September 14 and 19 to set the agenda for the processing of the Reform of the Regulations of the Congress and on the 26th and 27th of the same month for organizing the debate on the investiture of Alberto Núñez Feijóo”.
In a statement, the PP prided itself on exercising “parliamentary responsibilities” from the beginning, “unlike the government, which abandoned its functions.” In this regard, he recalled that he requested the appearance of Sánchez to report to the European Council, as well as to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, because of the war in the Middle East and in Marlaska because of the migration crisis. “To set these appearances, it is important that the Board of Spokespersons meet.”
Similarly, to increase the pressure on Congress and the government, the PP in the Senate processed a request for the appearance of Marlaska and also Minister Ione Belarra “in relation to the effects of global tension in the application of the 2030 Agenda” . These two requests were added to “the one presented on October 10 for Albares to report on the situation of Spaniards affected by the terrorist attack by Hamas in Israel.”
