Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy admitted defeat on Friday ahead of a no-confidence vote which was certain to topple him, paving the way for a takeover by opposition leader Pedro Sanchez, his arch rival. Barring any last-minute U-turn, an absolute majority of lawmakers, among them Catalan separatists and Basque nationalists, will vote through a no-confidence motion filed last week by the Socialists following a corruption scandal involving the PP. “Today we are signing a new page in the history of democracy in our country,” Sanchez told parliament where MPs were to begin voting at 0901 GMT. The National Court, which deals with major criminal cases, sentenced 29 people with links to the PP, including a former treasurer, to jail. It also ordered the party to pay back 245,000 euros ($290,000) received from the scheme to help finance election campaigns.

Source: Punch June 01, 2018 09:11 UTC