Weakening the rule of law in one state weakens it across Europe
In the chambers of the European Parliament, a quiet reckoning unfolded: the EU's Justice Commissioner publicly named Spain's failure to build the institutional safeguards that democracies require to remain honest with themselves. The rebuke is not merely procedural — it arrives as Spanish courts probe whether the Prime Minister's household interests shaped a billion-euro state rescue, and as the very office meant to answer that question operates under the authority of his former chief of staff. What Brussels is asking Spain to confront is not a technicality, but the older and harder question of whether power can ever be trusted to police itself.
- EU Justice Commissioner McGrath told the European Parliament that Spain has repeatedly ignored Brussels' core anti-corruption demands — no independent agency, no lobbying law, no genuine oversight of conflicts of interest.
- A Madrid court ordered an investigation into whether PM Sánchez had a conflict of interest approving a state bailout of a company tied to his wife's business world, but the government's own oversight office dismissed the complaint within 24 hours — for the second time.
- MEP Dolors Montserrat confronted McGrath directly, accusing the Sánchez government of running a propaganda operation against judges and journalists, and demanding EU action not against Spain as a nation, but against its leadership.
- International watchdog GRECO found Spain has failed to meet 19 anti-corruption recommendations, calling the conflict-of-interest office structurally incapable of independence and the proposed lobbying law inadequate.
- Spain's Justice Minister canceled his scheduled appearance before the EU civil liberties committee with less than a day's notice, a move Brussels read as deliberate indifference — deepening the standoff between Madrid and the European institutions.
During a European Parliament session on Spain's rule of law, EU Justice Commissioner Didier McGrath delivered a pointed assessment: Madrid has not acted on the reforms Brussels has been requesting for years. Spain still has no dedicated anti-corruption agency. A lobbying regulation law remains stalled. And the office responsible for overseeing conflicts of interest has never been given the structural independence it needs to function credibly.
The stakes of that last failure became vivid just days before McGrath spoke. Madrid's Superior Court of Justice ordered the government to investigate whether Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had a conflict of interest when he approved a state rescue of Air Europa — a company whose parent firm has business ties to his wife, Begoña Gómez. The conflict-of-interest office that should handle such a question reports directly to the executive, through a ministry led by Sánchez's former chief of staff. Within 24 hours of the court's order, the office dismissed the complaint for the second time, reasoning that Gómez held no formal management role and therefore no recusal was required.
In parliament, MEP Dolors Montserrat of the Popular Party confronted McGrath directly. She described a government deploying institutional machinery against judges, media, and oversight bodies, and called for European action — not against Spain, she clarified, but against its leadership. McGrath responded with measured but unmistakable concern, affirming that the Commission monitors member states through every available mechanism and stands ready to support reform.
The rebuke carries the weight of accumulating evidence. The Commission's 2024 rule-of-law report, published in July, had already flagged an urgent need to strengthen anti-corruption independence in Spain — released, notably, just after the Socialist Party's organizational secretary was jailed in the Koldo corruption case. GRECO, the Council of Europe's anti-corruption body, found Spain had failed to meet 19 key recommendations, criticizing the lobbying proposal as insufficient and the conflict-of-interest office as lacking genuine independence.
The week's tensions sharpened further when Justice Minister Félix Bolaños canceled his scheduled appearance before the EU civil liberties committee with less than a day's notice. European sources read the absence as a signal of indifference. Meanwhile, Socialist officials deflected blame toward the opposition, noting that the Popular Party, Vox, and Junts had blocked a parliamentary vote on creating a new corruption prevention office. The mutual accusations reveal how thoroughly the two sides have diverged — not just politically, but on the basic question of what institutions Spain needs to earn back public trust.
In a European Parliament session on Spain's rule of law, EU Justice Commissioner Didier McGrath delivered a pointed message: the Spanish government has not moved on the essential reforms Brussels has been asking for. The failures are specific and recurring. Spain still lacks a dedicated state agency to fight corruption. A long-promised law regulating lobbying remains stalled. And most critically, the mechanisms meant to ensure that the conflict-of-interest office operates independently have never been strengthened.
That last point carries particular weight right now. Just a week before McGrath spoke, Madrid's Superior Court of Justice ordered the government to investigate whether Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez had a conflict of interest when he approved a state rescue of Air Europa—a company whose parent firm, Globalia, has business ties to his wife, Begoña Gómez. The timing is not coincidental. In Spain, the Office of Conflicts of Interest answers directly to the executive branch, through the Ministry of Digital Transformation. The current minister, Óscar López, previously served as Sánchez's chief of staff. Brussels has grown skeptical about whether such an office can ever be truly impartial.
What happened next only deepened the concern. Despite the court's order, the conflict-of-interest office dismissed the Popular Party's complaint—for the second time, and within 24 hours. The office's reasoning was terse: Gómez does not hold a management position at Globalia, so Sánchez had no formal obligation to recuse himself from the cabinet vote. The case was closed. The decision sparked outrage and handed the opposition fresh ammunition.
On Tuesday, Dolors Montserrat, a European Parliament member from the Popular Party and secretary general of the European People's Party, confronted McGrath directly. She accused the Sánchez government of covering up irregularities and deploying what she called a "propaganda machine" against judges, media outlets, and institutions. She did not ask for more words. "I'm asking for action," she said. "Not against Spain. Against Sánchez." She described a pattern that erodes the separation of powers, undermines judicial independence, and restricts press freedom.
McGrath responded with diplomatic language but unmistakable concern. The European Commission, he said, uses every monitoring tool at its disposal when member states fail to uphold basic rule-of-law standards. Brussels is watching, he assured the parliament, and stands ready to help any government implement the reforms outlined in the annual rule-of-law report. Spain's situation had already drawn scrutiny in July, when the Commission published its 2024 assessment. That document warned of an "urgent need" to strengthen the independence of anti-corruption bodies and suggested the Spanish executive was dragging its feet. The report gained added weight when it was released just days after Santos Cerdán, the Socialist Party's organizational secretary, was jailed for his role in the Koldo corruption case.
International watchdogs have sounded alarms too. GRECO, the Council of Europe's anti-corruption group, found in its latest evaluation that Spain has failed to meet 19 key recommendations on corruption prevention. The group criticized the Sánchez government for a lack of "tangible results" in anti-corruption measures, faulted the lobbying law proposal as insufficient, called for reform of parliamentary immunity rules, and noted that the conflict-of-interest office "continues to lack genuine independence."
On Wednesday, the parliamentary session resumed without Spain's Justice Minister, Félix Bolaños. He had been scheduled to attend alongside judges and the head of the anti-corruption prosecution, but canceled with less than 24 hours' notice. The meeting was to be held behind closed doors anyway, which only amplified frustration in the European Parliament's civil liberties committee over the absence of official Spanish representation. EU sources interpreted the cancellation as a sign of indifference, a sharp contrast to McGrath's stated willingness to actively support Spain's reform efforts. Montserrat pressed her point: weakening the rule of law in one European state weakens it across the continent. The EU cannot allow that to happen.
The European rebuke arrives as Spain's political climate grows more tense. A mounting pile of corruption cases touching the Socialist Party's orbit, combined with legislative inaction on anti-corruption measures, has deepened Brussels' concern. Socialist sources countered that it was the Popular Party, along with Vox and Junts, that blocked a parliamentary vote a week earlier on creating a corruption prevention office. The blame-shifting underscores how far apart the government and opposition have drifted on the very institutions meant to restore public trust.
Notable Quotes
I'm asking for action. Not against Spain. Against Sánchez.— Dolors Montserrat, European Parliament member
Brussels uses every monitoring tool available when member states fail to uphold basic rule-of-law standards— EU Justice Commissioner McGrath
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does Brussels care so much about Spain's conflict-of-interest office? It seems like a technical detail.
Because it's the mechanism that's supposed to stop powerful people from using state power for personal gain. If it answers to the executive—if the minister running it used to work for the prime minister—then it's not really independent. It becomes a tool of the government, not a check on it.
And the Air Europa case is the proof of that?
Exactly. A court ordered an investigation. The office dismissed the complaint in 24 hours. That's not due diligence. That's the appearance of protection.
Why would McGrath bother with this if Spain is just going to ignore him?
Because Brussels has leverage. It can withhold funds, escalate pressure, damage Spain's standing in Europe. And because if one country gets away with it, others will too. The rule of law becomes negotiable.
The Justice Minister canceling at the last minute—was that defiance?
It read that way to people in Brussels. You don't skip a hearing on rule of law unless you're signaling that you don't take the criticism seriously. Or that you have nothing to say that would help your case.
What happens next?
Spain either reforms these institutions or faces escalating EU pressure. The court orders keep coming. The scandals keep surfacing. At some point, Brussels will have to decide whether to move beyond warnings.