Rubalcaba seeks united opposition front in Rajoy censure motion

“I want to be able to explain to my wife and my nephews what it is I do for a living,” said Socialist leader Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba Wednesday to explain his decision to present a censure motion against the prime minister over the Bárcenas affair.

 Rubalcaba has been drumming up support among the opposition in order to coordinate the motion in the case that, as is expected, the Popular Party again blocks Mariano Rajoy’s appearance before Congress.

The Basque Nationalist Party, the Catalan CiU nationalist bloc, the United Left (IU), and Union, Progress and Democracy (UPyD) have all agreed that the move will not seek to oust Rajoy but serve as a parliamentary tool to register their discontent.

CiU spokesman Josep Antoni Duran Lleida told Rubalcaba he was concerned about the image the move would present of Spain in the international media, while CiU leader Artur Mas said he had received several calls from other EU nations asking about Rajoy’s refusal to answer to Congress.

Opposition spokespeople believe the PP will seek a formula for Rajoy’s appearance that will limit his grilling to three questions lasting two minutes. The Socialists, meanwhile, fear the ongoing ERE case involving them in Andalusia will in the interim provide ammunition for the PP and weaken Rubalcaba’s position.