Spain – the country that breaks the EU?

23 May 2011

From the Wall Street Journal:

MADRID—Weekend elections that threaten to drive Spain’s ruling Socialist party from power in several regions and cities also promise a potentially nasty surprise: the revelation of piles of undisclosed debt in local governments that could undercut the country’s drive to avoid an international bailout

And in Spanish (El Pais): Iceland arrives in Spain at 15/May demo

Arrancó primero Nolesvotes, una iniciativa que insta a evitar llenar las urnas de papeletas de PP, PSOE y CiU acusándoles de aprovecharse de la ley electoral para perpetuarse en el Parlamento con unos “niveles de corrupción en España alarmantes”. . “¡De mayores queremos ser islandeses!”, clamó uno de los animadores de la organización durante la marcha del pasado domingo 15 de mayo ante una columna de jóvenes y no tan jóvenes, padres y niños, estudiantes y trabajadores, parados y jubilados.

And of course the Socialists got wiped out by the PP (right wing) in the weekend elections:

El tsunami del 22-M dejó al PSOE con su peor resultado de la historia en unas elecciones municipales (27,8% de votos), casi 10 puntos y dos millones de votos menos que el PP, que logró duplicar la distancia que sacó aquel histórico 1995 que preludió la derrota socialista en las elecciones generales del año siguiente tras 14 años de poder.

Given that more (empty) houses were built in Spain during the boom years than England, France and Germany combined, and there’s approximately 20% unemployment rate (and up to 50% for those in their 20’s and 30’s), and that the Spanish economy is about four times the size of Greece, the “Spanish situation” may be the straw that breaks the camel’s (EU’s) back.

There’s an old saying that “Europe ends at the Pyrenees” (ie the mountain ranges that divide France and Spain). Perhaps the saying will become “Europe ends at the Pyrenees, Italian Alps, and the mountains of Greece”.