MADRID Spain's anti-corruption prosecutor, who was in charge of graft investigations involving members of the ruling People's Party (PP), stepped down on Thursday after coming under fire for holding a stake in an offshore company in Panama. <\/p>\n
Manuel Moix's appointment in February had already led to a row between the minority PP government, which approved his nomination, and opposition parties which criticized the way he handled some cases involving the governing party. <\/p>\n
Moix confirmed on Wednesday that he had a 25 percent stake in an offshore company which he shared with his siblings and had inherited from his father. He denied any wrongdoing and said in a Spanish radio interview that the arrangement was legal. <\/p>\n
He stepped down on Thursday, though Spain's public prosecutor Jose Manuel Maza, who announced the anti-corruption chief's resignation, defended Moix's track record. <\/p>\n
\"I'm satisfied that there is absolutely nothing in the way he behaved that has been irregular or illegal,\" Maza told a news conference. <\/p>\n
Several Spanish newspapers reported in April that Moix had tried to hinder a probe, still at the pre-trial stage, which involved the PP's Madrid branch. <\/p>\n
Moix denied any wrongdoing, but opposition parties called for his resignation. <\/p>\n
Moix's appointment had become increasingly embarrassing for Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, whose party is embroiled in a series of corruption scandals, as opposition parties questioned his credentials. <\/p>\n
Rajoy, who is not himself accused of any wrongdoing, has been trying to distance himself from corruption scandals that have come at a cost in the ballot box. <\/p>\n
The conservative prime minister managed to stay on for a second term in office after the PP won the most votes in two inconclusive elections at the end of 2015 and in mid-2016. <\/p>\n
But the PP lost its absolute majority meaning it has to negotiate policies on a case-by-case basis with the opposition to get laws through parliament, like a much-delayed budget for 2017 for which it managed to scrape enough support this week. <\/p>\n
(Reporting by Raquel Castillo, Writing by Sarah White,; Editing by Sonya Dowsett and Stephen Powell) <\/p>\n
BRUSSELS China and the European Union will seek on Friday to save a global pact against climate change from which U.S. President Donald Trump said he will withdraw. <\/p>\n
CARACAS Venezuela's President Nicholas Maduro said on Thursday a referendum would be held on his controversial plan to create a new super-body known as a constituent assembly with powers to rewrite the constitution. <\/p>\n
HAVANA Cuba and the United States have dramatically reduced the rate of human trafficking since reaching a landmark accord in January but risk losing those gains if the two neighbors fail to resume high-level talks, Cuban Interior Ministry officials said in an exclusive interview. <\/p>\n
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Spanish anti-corruption chief resigns over offshore company - Reuters<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" MADRID Spain's anti-corruption prosecutor, who was in charge of graft investigations involving members of the ruling People's Party (PP), stepped down on Thursday after coming under fire for holding a stake in an offshore company in Panama. Manuel Moix's appointment in February had already led to a row between the minority PP government, which approved his nomination, and opposition parties which criticized the way he handled some cases involving the governing party. Continue reading