Spain’s rail crash probe challenges socialist government's safety assurances
Spain’s rail crash probe challenges socialist government's safety assurances
Spain’s rail crash probe challenges socialist government's safety assurances | Euractiv
The investigation into January’s high-speed rail crash in southern Spain that killed at least 45 people and the emergence of new evidence are making it harder to determine what caused the disaster and are putting pressure on the government’s early insistence that infrastructure was not to blame.
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Multiple inspections had been conducted months prior to the accident. Dismissing harsh criticism that track inspections are not carried out frequently enough, the minister claimed “nothing would have been found” even if technicians had conducted a review the day before.
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The probe is unfolding as the transport ministry – one of the biggest spending departments and a major recipient of EU funds – has been rocked by allegations involving rigged tenders, kickbacks and influence peddling.
Former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos remains in pretrial detention alongside his former aide Koldo García. Both are accused of orchestrating a criminal network that allegedly expanded from the health sector into public works and infrastructure.
Senior transport officials, including former state railway, ADIF, President Isabel Pardo de Vera, and former Director-General of Roads Javier Herrero, are under investigation for allegedly facilitating contracts linked to the so-called “Koldo scheme” in exchange for kickbacks.
Other defendants in ongoing corruption cases include Jesús Manuel Gómez, former deputy secretary of state for transport, and Michaux Miranda, ADIF’s former chief of staff.
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