Alberto Núñez Feijóo wanted to appear before the media late on Tuesday, when all the terms of the agreement had already been explained in Brussels. agreement between PSOE and PP on the renewal of the General Council for the Judiciary. He did it, said the leader of the PP, to 'share with the Spanish the satisfaction of the objectives achieved'. But in this 'mission accomplished', after more than two years at the head of the party, the leader of the Partido Popular has had to deal with different sectors that have pushed him not to reach an agreement with Pedro Sánchez's PSOE. During an appearance at the headquarters on Génova Street, Feijóo anticipated the criticism, donned the institutional garb and referred to his failed investiture speech of last September to defend the pact made with the Socialists: “In both cases, in recent years I have been under pressure from all kinds of forces, it has not been easy to remain steadfast, but my only objective has always been to maintain the separation of powers in our country. I will assume all the costs that the costs of political coherence entail. “I am in politics to guarantee the independence of the judiciary.”

Placed in front of the flags of Spain and the European Union expressly, Feijoo then divided the content of the text his Deputy Secretary for Institutional Affairs, Esteban González Pons, I would have developed it together with the Minister of the Presidency, Justice and Relations with the Cortes, Félix Bolaños, of the European Commission. In Madrid, the PP leader thanked “the support of the community institutions” through whose mediation Feijóo and Sánchez submitted a joint photo in December, before a tsunami elections marked by increased political confrontation. “The PSOE will not be able to control the judiciary, and neither will the PP,” Feijóo congratulated himself on Tuesday. “We know how to distinguish between opposition to the government and loyalty to the state,” defended the leader of the Popular Party, who had already received the explicit support of Isabel Díaz Ayuso through sources in her cabinet and criticism from the President of Vox. Santiago Abascal, in the halls of Congress.

Traveling to Germany with the President of the Community of MadridDíaz Ayuso’s entourage had rushed to show their support for Feijóo a few hours before his performance. And after days in which the president of the Community of Madrid had sent public messages to the party leader that contradicted the negotiations with Sánchez and before the ultimatum set by Sánchez expired next Sunday. Sources from Díaz Ayuso’s office have described the agreement between PSOE and PP as “a great success for Feijóo in defending judicial independence.” “Immediate renewal of the CGPJ and approval of a reform of the organic law of the judiciary in the same plenary session of the Congress of Deputies, in July,” these sources add. As for the consequences that the handshake between Bolaños and Pons could have in the ranks of the people, from Genoa they point out that Feijóo’s leadership remains intact. “There is internal peace. “We receive a broad applause,” said a member of the PP leadership about the Puerta del Sol statement.

In any case, Feijóo has also warned that the agreement reached after more than five years of blockade by the PP does not represent “a new climate between the two major parties” as “the government did not agree to the agreement out of conviction.” but 'out of obligation'. A transcendental pact for Spain's 'judicial independence', Feijóo has insisted, which, in the PP leader's opinion, would not have been possible without the mediation of the European Commission. Two years ago, Feijóo already faced pressure from Ayuso and the media not to implement the pact practically concluded with the Socialists on the judiciary, the terms of which are very similar to those that were ultimately signed. “Our demands in 2022 were the same. The only difference is that, now that they have been fulfilled, it has taken many months and the participation of the European institutions. If Europe had not intervened, we would not have reached that agreement today,” Feijóo acknowledged. Management sources reveal that talks with the PSOE intensified following Sánchez's ultimatum, a “threat” they ultimately appropriated by putting their conditions first, they claim from Genoa.

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Sánchez and Feijóo are expected to meet early Wednesday during the government's vetting session in Congress. Ahead of the face-to-face meeting, the head of the opposition dismissed fears that the agreed bill will not come to fruition. “The position of the PP will support the proposal of the judiciary, I ignore the position of the Socialist Party,” Feijóo said today, emphasizing, however, that it represents “a historic step.”