Congress opens sanctioning file against PP deputy Ana Vázquez for carrying pepper spray

This Tuesday, the Congressional Board opened a sanctioning file against PP deputy Ana Vázquez for bringing pepper spray into the chamber, which could lead to the temporary suspension of her status as a deputy. The decision has been made with the votes of the progressive majority of the Board made up of PSOE and Sumar, and the opposition of the Popular Party, as reported by parliamentary sources. Once the procedure is opened, Vázquez will be given a period to present her allegations, which will be studied by the Board before deciding whether to propose that she be sanctioned, which would entail the withdrawal of employment and salary for the duration of the sanction.

The Congress Bureau has initiated the procedure under article 101, invoked in plenary by President Francina Armengol last Wednesday. The Lower House has given him a period of 10 days to formulate his allegations before, where appropriate, the Board could make the proposal for temporary suspension of employment and salary contained in said article. Said sanction proposal must then be approved by the Plenary in a simple majority and secret session.

The incident occurred during the Government control session last Wednesday. During a question to the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, the PP deputy showed a canister of pepper spray to warn about the situation of women and minors in Ceuta who have begun to use it as an instrument of defense against the insecurity they perceive. The president of the lower house quickly called attention to its use, since it is considered a weapon, and although its purchase is legal, its entry into the seat of democracy and national sovereignty is not permitted.

Armengol forced him to leave the chamber and deposit the spray outside of it. Despite her initial reluctance, Vázquez ended up going out into the hallways, where she addressed journalists still with the can in her hand, harshly criticizing the decision of the president of Congress.