Minister Óscar Puente accuses Feijóo of having a "double standard" and responds to Santiago Abascal's attacks after the tragedy in Urda: "Insults and barbarities"

Óscar Puente responded this Friday to the criticisms of Alberto Núñez Feijóo and Santiago Abascal after the Urda railway accident, in Toledo. The Minister of Transport has accused the leader of the PP of using a "double standard" regarding the Angrois tragedy and has lashed out at the insults from the far-right Vox leader.

In an interview with Esther Palomera on TVE's 'Malas Lenguas' program, Puente defended the explanations he offered about the collision between a Renfe AVE and an Iryo train, which has left at least 69 people dead. The minister assured that he has not blamed any worker and acknowledged that the investigation will have to define responsibilities, including any that might correspond to him.

Puente's words come after Feijóo demanded this Friday the resignation of both the minister and the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez. For his part, Abascal held a pre-campaign rally in Ávila this Thursday during official mourning, in which he called the head of Transport "Óscar Muerte" and accused him and the president of forming a "sinister couple."

Asked about these statements on TVE, the minister asked to compare Feijóo's current position with the one he maintained on the Alvia accident in Angrois, Santiago de Compostela, in 2013, when the PP leader presided over the Xunta de Galicia and the central government was also in the hands of the popular party.

"In one case, the responsibility falls on a worker, in the other on the minister. It is the double standard of the right in this country, which we are already used to," Puente said during the interview.

The comparison with Angrois has also been part of this Friday's debate. Asked about his position in that tragedy, Feijóo has defended that Justice supported his thesis. In January, the Provincial Court of A Coruña confirmed the conviction of the train driver and acquitted the former director of Security of Adif, after both had been convicted in the first instance.

Regarding Abascal, Puente has criticized Vox for having decided to go ahead with its pre-campaign events and has considered that the party has shown "zero respect for the victims". The far-right leader justified holding the Ávila rally by assuring that his party wanted to demand explanations and responsibilities.

The minister has linked the personal attacks of the Vox leader with the "ordeal" he said he expected after the accident. "That ordeal that awaits me is to continue listening to this man say the barbarities he says, the insults he utters and the personal attacks," he stated.

Puente has also rejected that a railway tragedy be presented as if it had been a deliberate action to cause deaths. In his opinion, that discourse reveals "moral baseness" on the part of those who support it.

"I have not blamed anyone"

During the interview, Palomera asked the minister about the criticism from unions and leaders such as Ada Colau and Irene Montero, who have warned against the possibility of placing all responsibility for the accident on a single worker. Colau has called for Puente's resignation this Friday, a request that Frente Amplio has forwarded to La Moncloa.

The Minister of Transport has denied that this is his approach. "I have not blamed anyone, I merely limit myself to reporting the facts," he assured. As he explained, his appearances have been based on images from the control center, available communications, and circulation rules and protocols.

Puente admitted, at the same time, that a possible individual or collective action in the control center "does not exempt other people, including myself, from responsibilities or other responsibilities either." He added that it will be necessary to determine these responsibilities and study how to prevent similar failures from recurring.

The minister has stated that, after the failure of the LZB safety system, the control center staff had screens to know the position of the trains. Asked why the order to resume the journey was given, he admitted that he does not know the explanation and that he would like to be able to offer it.

Regarding the recovery of confidence in high-speed rail, Puente has indicated that the Government is working with experts to study improvements. "Confidence, like the path, is built by walking," he said, before admitting that after a second serious tragedy in less than a year it will be more difficult to recover it.

Puente clarifies there is no decision on the Madrid-Barcelona line

The interview also served for the minister to clarify his morning statements about the possibility of temporarily closing the Madrid-Barcelona high-speed line during future renovation works.

Puente explained that he was asked about the German model, which contemplates interrupting circulation while certain works are carried out to complete them in less time. He insisted that no decision has been made, that the issue is not related to safety, and that an eventual closure would not be immediate.

The minister placed the reflection on the planned renovation of the infrastructure, starting with the section between Madrid and Calatayud, and on the effects that the works can have on frequencies, punctuality, and incidents when carried out with the line in service.

Puente ruled out resigning this Friday and assured that he has the confidence of Pedro Sánchez. The minister will appear on Tuesday, November 3, before the Permanent Deputation of Congress, at his own request, to offer explanations about the accident.

Asked if he will be able to participate in the general election campaign on November 29, he replied that he now has other priorities. "The last thing I'm thinking about is the campaign," he said, explaining that over the next few days he will work on measures aimed at restoring confidence in the railway system.