Sánchez reported to Spain's Supreme Court over failure to act in illegal funding case

Spain's Supreme Court admits complaint against Sánchez for his inaction in the alleged PSOE funding scandal

The opposition has widened its complaint against Pedro Sánchez before Spain's Supreme Court, accusing him of failure to report a crime in the alleged illegal funding of the PSOE. The filing argues that the prime minister «had a duty to know about it» and did nothing about the activities of his vvife, Begoña Gómez, and his brother, David Sánchez. The complaint comes in parallel with Judge Pedraz's decision to charge the chairwoman of the Sepi (Spain's state-owned holding company) and 24 other people in the case investigating 'fixer' Leire Díez, a case some quarters have branded «narcosocialism».

Charges at the Audiencia Nacional: the Leire Díez case reaches the Sepi

Audiencia Nacional judge Pedraz, at the request of the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office, has charged the chairwoman of the Sepi and 24 other people in the scheme surrounding Leire Díez, a key figure in the alleged corruption network. Although the case centres on irregular funding, the connection with the Moncloa circle is inevitable: Leire Díez was in charge of the PSOE's digital strategy in the 2019 campaign. The charges broaden the scope of the investigation towards senior public officials.

Feijóo makes his move: the no-confidence motion returns to the stage

Against this backdrop, Alberto Núñez Feijóo has changed his stance and is now in favour of tabling a no-confidence motion. The leader of the PP argues that «whoever does not back the no-confidence motion backs corruption», a shift that tightens the parliamentary calendar and opens the possibility of a debate in Congress with the illegal funding affair as its economic backdrop.

The political cost of inaction: does it affect the economy?

Corruption scandals generate political uncertainty that spills over into the markets. At a time of global slowdown, institutional instability can make state borrowing more expensive and delay key investment decisions. The question hanging in the air is whether the judicialisation of the alleged illegal funding will end up weighing down the economic recovery or whether, on the contrary, the fall of the Government would clear the horizon. For now, neither the PSOE nor the Executive has made any official statement on the widened complaint.