The conservative block of the CGPJ asks the progressive for more candidates to unblock the negotiation on the TC

The progressives will hold an internal meeting to study the proposal to add more names to Bandrés

MADRID, 1 Dic. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The conservative bloc of the General Council of the Judiciary (CGPJ) has reiterated this Thursday to its progressive interlocutors that it is necessary that they give more names, in addition to the already released Supreme Court (TS) magistrate José Manuel Bandrés, in order to advance in the negotiations intended for the Council to designate the two candidates for the Constitutional Court (TC) that correspond to it.

Legal sources of the governing body of the judges have indicated to Europa Press that the meeting of the negotiating commission held this December 1 has served for the conservative spokesmen --José Antonio Ballestero and Carmen Llombart-- to reiterate to their progressive counterparts -- Álvaro Cuesta and Roser Bach-- the position already established a couple of weeks ago.

As they explain, the meeting has concluded with a commitment by the progressive members to study the conservative proposal in an internal meeting, a movement that the aforementioned sources perceive as progress.

The progressive wing has already launched a first list of nine applicants that it later reduced to one: Bandrés. The conservative sector then urged to sift through that initial list to choose a few candidates, but believes that the fact that their interlocutors have already put a single name on the table means leading the negotiations to a mere "distribution of cards", for which reason Now he is again demanding a short list to jointly agree on the two candidates.

Although the conservative members have not yet formalized any name, as Europa Press has learned, they manage six: Pablo Llarena, Julián Sánchez Melgar and Vicente Magro, from the Criminal Chamber of the TS; and César Tolosa, Inés Huerta and Diego Córdoba, from the Contentious-Administrative Chamber.

However, the sources consulted indicate that the best positioned to obtain the endorsement of the CGPJ as a whole are Tolosa and Pablo Lucas, the magistrate of the TS in charge of controlling the activity of the CNI and who was on that first list of nine candidates made known by progressive vowels.

Events have precipitated in recent days after last Tuesday the Government appointed former Justice Minister Juan Carlos Campo and former Moncloa senior officer Laura Díez as its two candidates for the TC.

However, the Constitutional Court has chosen to wait for the CGPJ to hold its ordinary plenary session on December 22 --with the expectation that it can name its two candidates for the TC--, thus ruling out examining the candidates separately. two candidates for the Executive to verify if they meet the legal requirements to access the court of guarantees.

Campo and Díez would come to replace the president of the TC, Pedro González-Trevijano, and Antonio Narváez, but the vice president, Juan Antonio Xiol, and Santiago Martínez-Vares would still have to be replaced, since these four magistrates make up the third that the Constitution entrusts renew to the Government and CGPJ and whose renewal has been pending since June 12.

Legal sources point out that at the moment there are conflicting positions within the TC, with one that sees it possible for the two from Moncloa to overcome the Constitutional 'placet' alone and renew the third by halves (from two to two); and another that understands that the Magna Carta requires that the renewal be done with the full third (all four at the same time).

Thus, the TC has set its sights on December 22, when the members have promised to hold the first vote on their candidates for the Constitutional Assembly in that plenary session. However, sources from the governing body of the judges warn that this does not mean that there will be white smoke that day, which could postpone any agreement to 2023.