Parliamentary uproar: 3 February

It may not compare with the continuing Westminster circus but there has been uproar in the Spanish parliament. The ruling coalition was trying to get it’s labour reform bill through but was faced with very tight numbers. On the day of the vote, 2 members of the UPN party switched at the last moment – in defiance of the whip – to voting no instead of yes.  On top of which, an opposition party (PP) member, by mistake, voted yes instead of no! The net result was that the bill passed by a single vote. The unfortunate PP deputy first claimed there was a computer error (he voted remotely, not in the chamber), then that he has been suffering from gastroenteritis. Both of which alibis were seen to be as convincing as the famous “I didn’t know it was a party …” And the rogue UPN members were accused of having been bought …

Context: the reforms are necessary conditions for Spain to receive €12 billions of pandemic recovery funds from the EU.