After more than 2,000 days of institutional blockade, the renewal of the General Council of the Judiciary was agreed on this Tuesday afternoon after a meeting between Félix Bolaños (PSOE) and Esteban González Pons (PP) in Brussels.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Government and the main opposition party reached a agreement for the renewal of the General Council of the Judiciary. This decision comes after a situation of institutional blockage which lasted for five and a half years. He highest governing body of judges has remained more than 2,000 days in office.
The agreement, signed between the Socialist Party and the Popular Party, has been signed in Brussels, since the European Commission has been the mediator during the last part of the process. “Spain is a proud democracy and it is absolutely essential to have a independent and well-functioning judiciary“, defended the vice president of the European Commission, Vera Jourová during the press conference after the signing of the agreement.
The Minister of the Presidency, Felix Bolañosas well as the vice president of institutional action of the PP and MEP of the formation, Esteban González Pons, have been in charge of materializing the agreement. “Finally there has been an agreement for the renewal of the judicial power. It is an agreement that puts an end to an institutional anomaly that our country had,” Bolaños noted during his speech. For his part, González Pons argued that “today is a good day for judicial independence, the rule of law and the constitutional regime.” According to the representative of the Popular Party, “Spanish justice is more independent than yesterday and distances himself from politics and politicians.” The two political representatives have avoided appearing together.
What else have PP and PSOE agreed?
Both political leaders have also agreed, the implementation of a non-law proposal jointly to ensure the judicial independence within the body of judges. This was one of the main requests of Feijóo’s people in the negotiation. It was also one of the recommendations of the European Commission in its Report on the Rule of Law in Spain for 2022 and 2023.
There will be changes in the way the chief justice is chosen. Now The members of the Council will decidewhich “will do so with a minimum of 12 votes in favor and without candidates suggested by the political parties,” popular sources point out.
They have also agreedor the appointment of a new magistrate of the Constitutional Court to fill Alfredo Montoya’s position that had been vacant for two years when he was absent for health reasons. He will occupy it José María Macías, current member of the CGPJ
The two parties have decided on the distribution of the 20 members of the Council, which will correspond to 10 each in an “absolutely balanced” manner. The decision will be endorsed in a plenary session of the Congress of Deputies in the month of July, popular sources assure.
