Endemic corruption

One of the showiest aspects of the appearance of Daniel Hannan (outstanding MEP of the British Tories) before the Spanish Media in Madrid has been his accusation of the municipal corruption in the Spanish Coast and Islands, whoever may govern there, Populars or Socialists.

Hannan’s matches with another even harder accusation the European Union has made last March. On the last 26th of March the plenary session of the European Parliament approved the “Auken Report” that calls for the Communitarian funds for Spain to be frozen until the city-planning abuses denounced in Brussels by several EU countries citizens are solved. The adopted Resolution asks to suspend and to review all the new plans that do not respect the environment and do not guarantee the property rights. It asks, in addition, to annul the city-planning developments in course that do not adjust to the Communitarian legislation.

This is the third time the European Parliament denounces the city-planning abuses in Spain during the current legislature. First it was in December of 2005 and then in June of 2007. The Socialists and Popular Spaniards have proposed two alternative resolutions to reduce the content, but both have been rejected.

Although the Report was elaborated by Danish Green MEP Margrete Auken, this does not reduce credibility to its denunciation, because it goes further on. It tells us about the Spanish Judiciary lamentable situation that prevents the aggrieved to see their rights satisfied.

It does not surprise, therefore, Daniel Hannan’s campaign lashing the merchants of a Temple that had to be mirror of transparency, honesty and austerity.

That the objectives of the Tory English Party and AES agree in this purpose is, simply, a pride and a signal that the evil of the corruption will face an answer both in Spain and Europe.