Spain: Far-right party files no-confidence motion against government

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Spain’s far-right party Vox filed a no-confidence motion on Monday against what its leaders call “the worst government in Spanish history.”

“No one can say that we are sitting back and doing nothing while (Prime Minister Pedro) Sanchez demolishes the rule of law,” Vox leader Santiago Abascal told a press conference, accusing the government of lying, striking deals with “enemies of Spain” like Catalan separatists, and “assaulting institutions.”

But the motion appears doomed to fail as the spokesperson from Spain’s main conservative opposition party, the Popular Party, slammed it as “political theater.”

“We don’t want to turn parliament into a new circus that only helps Sanchez,” said Borja Semper.

Other opposition parties, including the left-wing Catalan party ERC, are calling on all parties to boycott the no-confidence vote and not waste their time debating the far-right motion.

While the coalition government has generally shrugged off the motion, former Health Minister and current Socialist Party leader in Catalonia said the country should “take the far-right seriously.”

In hopes of gaining some support, Vox has nominated 89-year-old economist Ramon Tamames as a candidate to lead the motion. A former member of the Communist Party, he has said he grew more conservative over time.

Vox also said that if the motion passes, it will call general elections on May 28.

Regardless of whether the motion passes, Spaniards will go to the polls to elect a national government this year, as the government’s four-year term will run out on Dec. 10.