Ex-minister to give up seat in Congress if judge names him in graft case

Former Public Works Minister José Blanco, who served in the Socialist administration of former Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, said on Tuesday that he would give up his seat in Congress if he is formally named in an investigation into alleged influence peddling charges and breach of official duty.

The prosecutor at the Supreme Court has requested that Congress be petitioned to lift Blanco’s immunity as a deputy so that he can face the accusations lodged against him.

“Once the judicial investigation has concluded and the judge decides to give the order for a hearing to commence, I will do what I have to do, which is to resign as a deputy; that is, leave my seat,” Blanco said.

Blanco added that if the court does petition Congress to lift his immunity he will ask the lower house to accede to the request. However, he said there are a number of challenges his lawyers have made in the case that still have to be decided upon. “Logically, these should be ruled on,” he said.

In what is known as the Champion case, Galician pharmaceutical businessman Jorge Dorribo has claimed he paid Blanco at least 290,000 euros to intervene on his behalf with the public administrations to obtain permits necessary for his business. Blanco has denied the accusations. “I never received money from Mr Dorribo and I never intervened on behalf of this gentleman,” Blanco said during a press conference on Tuesday.

The judge has not concluded his preliminary investigation. Last month he requested that the tax authorities supply him with the bank account numbers of Blanco and his wife and extracts from these for the period 2006-2011.