Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has survived a vote of no-confidence brought to parliament by the anti-austerity Podemos party to denounce rampant corruption.

The motion was backed by 82 legislators, with 170 voting against it and 97 abstaining, prompting it to fail on Wednesday.

The vote had not been expected to succeed, but it was brought to parliament by Podemos to put pressure on Rajoy's ruling right-wing Popular Party (PP), which has been hit by a series of corruption scandals.

It was also an occasion for other opposition parties to express their differences in a highly fragmented parliament that has forced Rajoy to head up a minority government following successive inconclusive elections in 2015 and 2016.

"We are on the right track to build up an alternative majority," Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias told Reuters news agency after the vote.

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Rajoy said he was satisfied with the outcome of the vote. "It has been rejected by a wide majority and this means we will be able to keep working," he told journalists.

The vote followed a 16-hour debate in which Rajoy faced off against Iglesias, who was proposed as an alternative candidate for prime minister, but lacked sufficient support in the lower house.

Rajoy defended his government's record in creating jobs and boosting growth that has lifted Spain's economy out of recession.

Iglesias and his supporters highlighted graft investigations into the funding of the ruling party. Iglesias said Rajoy would be remembered as "the president of corruption".

Rajoy argued there were corruption cases in all parties, but that it was not the norm and no case involved members of his government.

But Rajoy has been dragged into one of the most damaging of the cases, an alleged kickbacks-for-contracts scheme. He is set to testify as a witness in the case on July 26.

Opinion polls regularly show corruption is a major concern in Spain after high unemployment.

Rajoy heads a minority government and his party, with 134 seats, counts on the support of the centrist Ciudadanos party's 32 deputies and several others.

The leading opposition Socialist party, with 84 deputies, is considering presenting its own no-confidence motion, but on Wednesday decided to abstain rather than be seen supporting Iglesias, whom it deems to be an anti-establishment populist.

Podemos emerged in 2013 from grassroots protests that swept across the country during the five-year severe economic recession that ended that year. </s> MADRID (AP) - Spanish lawmakers have begun debating a motion of no confidence against conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, called in protest over the large number of corruption scandals involving his ruling Popular Party.

The motion to be voted on after the debate Tuesday was proposed by the far-left Podemos party but it is unlikely to get the required backing of an absolute majority of deputies needed to oust Rajoy.

Podemos, with 71 deputies in the 350-seat parliament, is presenting the party's ponytailed leader, Pablo Iglesias, as an alternative candidate to replace Rajoy.

Rajoy, who heads a minority government, has been dragged into the most damaging of the corruption cases involving the Popular Party, an alleged kickbacks-for-contracts scheme to finance party activities. He testifies as a witness in the case July 26. </s> MADRID—Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy survived a parliamentary vote of confidence on Wednesday, but the two-day debate was an uncomfortable public airing of the corruption investigations that have dogged his party.

Spanish lawmakers rejected by 170 to 82 the no-confidence vote against Mr. Rajoy, who was re-elected prime minister of the... </s> MADRID: Spain's parliament on Tuesday began to debate a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy after corruption scandals linked to his ruling People's Party.

The motion, filed by anti-austerity party Podemos, is not expected to win the support of the absolute majority of lawmakers needed to force out Rajoy, who won re-election last year and leads a minority government.

Podemos, which took around a fifth of the vote in last year's two elections, says the motion is a rally against the PP's alleged use of public coffers and institutions to defend its own interests to the detriment of the electorate.

"Spain is fed up with your theft, and democracy demands a change," Podemos's parliamentary speaker, Irene Montero, told lawmakers.

"Corruption has a headquarters and it is at Genova 13," she said, referring to the address of the PP's party base in Madrid.

Dozens of PP members - including former economy minister and IMF chief Rodrigo Rato - have been implicated in graft cases, which opposition parties say shows entrenched corruption.

Rajoy has been called to testify as a witness at a trial of PP members including former party treasurer Luis Barcenas on July 26 following a long investigation into an alleged party slush fund. He has not been accused of any wrongdoing.

The PP denies that any senior party officials were involved in cases of corruption. It says only a tiny number of its politicians are corrupt and that it is tackling the problem.

The no-confidence vote is expected to be held on Wednesday.

The vote is a direct challenge to the Socialist party, whose place in Spanish politics as the traditional left-wing opposition Podemos hopes to seize. The Socialists enabled Rajoy's re-election last October after 10 months of deadlock by abstaining in a parliamentary vote. </s> A motion of no confidence has been passed in Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy following a corruption scandal.

It passed by 180 votes to 169 with one abstention.

He is the first Spanish prime minister to lose such a vote since Spain transitioned to democracy in 1977.

Deputies were asked individually in the lower house of parliament, the Congress of Deputies, whether or not they supported the motion on Friday morning.

This was done in an individual roll-call of deputies.

Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, bottom right, waves as members of his party applaud him during the second day of a motion of no confidence session at the Spanish parliament in Madrid | Image: Francisco Seco/AP/Press Association Images

This means Pedro Sánchez, the leader of the opposition PSOE party, is the new prime minister.

Mr Sanchez (46) is expected to take office by Monday, after King Felipe VI swears him in.

He is also expected to appoint his cabinet next week.

Mr Sanchez has already committed to respecting a budget passed by Mr Rajoy.

He has also promised to start talks with the Catalans over their bid for independence, but said he will not give them another referendum.

His party has a narrow majority in the 350-seat lower house.

Pedro Sánchez smiles at the start of the second day of a motion of no confidence session at the Spanish parliament in Madrid | Image: Francisco Seco/AP/Press Association Images

Mr Rajoy told the Spanish parliament he was proud of his record.

"It has been an honour to leave Spain better than I found it. Thank you to all Spaniards and good luck," he said.

The vote of no-confidence came after 29 former members of his conservative Popular Party were convicted of corruption last week.

The Spanish National Court found bribes were offered to former officials in exchange for public contracts.

The party also received a fine as a beneficiary of the kickbacks-for-contracts scheme. </s> MADRID (AP) — Conservative Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy survived Wednesday, as expected, a parliamentary vote of no-confidence that was called by far-left lawmakers to protest the many corruption scandals tainting the ruling Popular Party.

The vote followed a 16-hour debate in which Rajoy faced off against Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias, who was proposed as an alternative candidate for prime minister but lacked sufficient support in the lower house.

The no-confidence motion was rejected by 170 votes to 82, with 97 abstentions.

In the debate, Rajoy highlighted his government’s record in creating jobs and boosting growth since 2011 to lift Spain’s economy out of recession.

Iglesias and his supporters levelled non-stop accusations of graft, listing the dozens of investigations involving Rajoy’s party. Iglesias said Rajoy would be remembered as “the president of corruption.”

Rajoy argued there were corruption cases in all parties but that it was not the norm and no case involved members of his government.

He has, however, been dragged into one of the most damaging of the cases, an alleged kickbacks-for-contracts scheme. He testifies as a witness in the case July 26.

Following the vote, Iglesias promised to keep working to oust the Popular Party from office.

But Rajoy said the vote sent “a clear message” of rejection to Iglesias’ party, whom he classified as “radicals.”

He said the fact that an immense majority decided not to support the motion was a signal that his government could get back to work.

Rajoy heads a minority government since elections last year. His party, with 134 seats, counts on the support of the centrist Ciudadanos party’s 32 deputies and several others.

The leading opposition Socialist party, with 84 deputies, is considering presenting its own no-confidence motion, but on Wednesday decided to abstain rather than be seen supporting Iglesias, whom it deems to be an anti-establishment populist.

Podemos emerged in 2013 from grassroots protests that swept across the country during the five-year severe economic recession that ended that year. </s> MADRID (Reuters) - Spain’s Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy will face a vote of no confidence over a graft case involving members of his People’s Party (PP) in which a High Court judge also questioned the credibility of his testimony as a witness last year.

It is not yet clear whether the opposition Socialists could secure enough backing to topple the conservative Rajoy, as they would need the support of upstart parties Podemos and Ciudadanos.

The case, which relates to the use of a slush fund by the Conservatives in the 1990s and early 2000s to illegally finance campaigns, has plagued Rajoy since he came to power in 2011. He has always denied wrongdoing.

Rajoy, became the first sitting prime minister in Spain to give evidence in a trial when he was called as a witness in the case last year, prompting calls for him to resign.

Twenty-nine people related to the PP, including a former treasurer and other senior members, were convicted on Thursday of offences including falsifying accounts, influence-peddling and tax crimes. They were sentenced to a combined 351 years behind bars.

In his ruling, the judge said there was evidence the party ran a slush fund for many years and that the credibility of Rajoy’s testimony denying it “should be questioned”.

“(His) testimony does not appear as plausible enough to refute the strong evidence showing the existence of a slush fund in the party,” the judge said. </s> MADRID, May 25 (Reuters) - Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy will face a vote of no confidence over a graft case involving members of his People's Party (PP) in which a High Court judge also questioned the credibility of his testimony as a witness last year.

It is not yet clear whether the opposition Socialists could secure enough backing to topple the conservative Rajoy, as they would need the support of upstart parties Podemos and Ciudadanos.

The case, which relates to the use of a slush fund by the Conservatives in the 1990s and early 2000s to illegally finance campaigns, has plagued Rajoy since he came to power in 2011. He has always denied wrongdoing.

Rajoy, became the first sitting prime minister in Spain to give evidence in a trial when he was called as a witness in the case last year, prompting calls for him to resign.

Twenty-nine people related to the PP, including a former treasurer and other senior members, were convicted on Thursday of offences including falsifying accounts, influence-peddling and tax crimes. They were sentenced to a combined 351 years behind bars.

In his ruling, the judge said there was evidence the party ran a slush fund for many years and that the credibility of Rajoy's testimony denying it "should be questioned".

"(His) testimony does not appear as plausible enough to refute the strong evidence showing the existence of a slush fund in the party," the judge said. (Reporting by Julien Toyer and Raquel Castillo Editing by Peter Graff) </s> Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy has comfortably survived a parliamentary no-confidence vote brought against him due to a series of corruption scandals tainting his conservative Popular Party (PP).

The vote was called by the leftist Unidos Podemos coalition, which charged that the PP was unfit to govern following a torrent of investigations and lawsuits engulfing it recently. However, the motion had been widely expected to fail from the outset, because Unidos Podemos, the third-biggest party in parliament, was not able to form an alternative administration.

The Basque Bildu coalition and the Catalan Republican Left (ERC) also supported the no-confidence motion, which received 82 votes in the 350-seat Congress in Wednesday’s ballot. There were 170 votes against and 97 abstentions.

“You will go down in history as the prime minister of corruption,” Unidos Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias told Mr Rajoy during a three-hour speech on Tuesday, in the debate leading up to the vote.

“You bailed out your friends, not the Spanish people,” he added, in reference to the 2012 financial crisis, when several banks were rescued at taxpayers’ expense.

Investigators have been probing the PP’s accounts following allegations that for many years the party kept a slush fund financed by corporate bribes. In a separate case, the former regional premier of Madrid, Ignacio González, was arrested in April on charges of embezzling a public water company.

Meanwhile, former economy minister and IMF managing director Rodrigo Rato has been facing three lawsuits related to his tax affairs and management of Bankia bank. Several other scandals have also been plaguing the party, at a local and national level.

Mr Rajoy, who surprised many by choosing to take part in the debate instead of delegating, responded by highlighting Spain’s economic stability under his supervision and dismissing the credentials of Unidos Podemos as a potential party of government.

“As far as governing this country is concerned, Mr Iglesias, I don’t believe you deserve that honour nor Spain that punishment,” the prime minister said.

This was the third no-confidence motion in Spain’s modern history and each one has failed. Unidos Podemos has faced widespread criticism for calling a vote that always appeared doomed. However, it was an opportunity for Mr Iglesias to present his party as the main opposition force, ahead of the Socialists, who only recently chose a new leader, Pedro Sánchez, after months of turmoil.

The Socialists abstained in Wednesday’s vote, but an apparent thawing of relations between them and Unidos Podemos during the debate hinted that the two parties might be able to work together in the future to prevent the PP from governing – something they already do in several city halls and regional governments.

“We are opening the door to the possibility of changing the government in Spain,” Unidos Podemos congressman Pablo Bustinduy told The Irish Times.

“We think this is the first step towards having that different government that will make the alternative not only possible but a reality.”
Spanish Prime Minister, Mariano Rajoy, survives a no-confidence vote, presented by Podemos, as he is called to declare as a witness in the trial for Gürtel corruption scandal in 26 July.