Spain row: Government attacks Feijóo citizenship plan

Spain's government is attacking a plan to strip citizenship from foreigners who commit serious crimes. Transport Minister Óscar Puente condemned the proposal in Madrid on Tuesday, 15 September, a day after Popular Party leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo said his party was preparing legislation. The plan would cover people convicted of crimes including murder, terrorism and repeat rape.

Puente called the move “absurd” and driven by “desperation”. Speaking after the Cabinet meeting at La Moncloa, he said Feijóo would not be making such proposals if he trusted opinion polls that put the Popular Party ahead for the next general election.

Government challenges two-tier citizenship

The minister focused on the distinction between Spanish citizens and people who have become Spanish nationals. He pointedly asked whether the rule would also apply to Luis Bárcenas, the former Popular Party treasurer convicted of corruption.

“Are we going to do it to nationals who commit crimes too, take away their nationality? What are we going to turn them into, stateless people?” Puente said.

Government sources said the proposal could affect naturalised migrants who have lived in Spain for many years and have strong roots in the country. They argued that current law already provides ways to expel foreign offenders who have not obtained Spanish citizenship.

Saiz accuses PP of deepening crisis

Government spokeswoman Elma Saiz said the Cabinet was dealing with the crisis “with legality and humanity”, while accusing the Popular Party of wanting the situation to become entrenched.

She said the opposition was putting party interests before the law and human rights. Puente also claimed Feijóo was trying to set the pace for Ceuta president Juan Jesús Vivas, whom the government has accused of abandoning institutional language and adopting the discourse of the PP’s national headquarters.

Topics: Migration · Politics · Palma

Source: Europa Press / Mallorca.com