Spain’s ruling party bans members from paying for sex after corruption scandal
‘If we believe a woman’s body is not for sale, our party cannot allow behaviour contrary to that,’ Prime Minister Sanchez says
Hit by a corruption scandal involving alleged kickbacks and sex workers, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s party shook up its top leadership on Saturday and banned members from paying for sex.
Sanchez, 53, is facing the biggest crisis of his seven years in power. That was heightened on Monday by the detention of a former top official in his Socialist party, Santos Cerdan, in an investigation involving allegations of corruption and hiring sex workers.
In a bid to right the ship, the Socialist party announced that “soliciting, accepting or obtaining sexual acts in exchange for money” was now banned for party members, punishable by “the maximum sanction, expulsion from the party”.
“If we believe a woman’s body is not for sale, our party cannot allow behaviour contrary to that,” Sanchez said.
“These are difficult times for everyone, without a doubt,” he told party leaders at a meeting in Madrid, once again apologising for trusting those caught up in the growing scandal.
But he also reiterated his refusal to step down.
“The captain doesn’t look the other way when seas get rough. He stays to steer the ship through the storm,” he said.