The PSOE and parliamentary allies surround Garzón and prevent him from appearing in Congress

From the left, the socialists Alfonso Gómez de Celis and Héctor Gómez along with the popular Adolfo Suárez Illana and Ana Pastor, this Tuesday at the Permanent Delegation of Congress.Marta Fernández Jara (Europa Press)

Alberto Garzón, meat and large farms, the issue that monopolized the political debate during the first two weeks of the year, will not have much more travel in the Congress of Deputies.

The Socialists, who had criticized the controversial statements by the Minister of Consumption to the

newspaper against large-scale livestock, have closed ranks seamlessly this Tuesday with their partners from United We Can and have blocked the urgent appearance in the Permanent Deputation of the Chamber de Garzón claimed by the PP.

The usual parliamentary allies of the Government have also defended the minister against criticism from popular, Vox and Ciudadanos.

The Permanent Delegation of Congress, a decision-making body outside the sessions, had been summoned to examine the 10 requests for the urgent appearance of ministers presented by the PP: two from the third vice president and head of Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, another two from the head of the Treasury and one each of the Economy, Health, Justice and Transport, in addition to those of Consumption and Agriculture, these two for the same meat issue.

The popular ones have only been successful in one of the requests to appear, that of Carolina Darias, Minister of Health, to talk about the sixth wave of covid, in this case because the Government's own formations have supported it.

The Executive has gone through certain difficulties to prevent the first vice president and head of Economy, Nadia Calviño, from urgently going to the Chamber to explain the distribution of European funds. At this point, the popular have received the support of some usual allies of the Government, such as ERC and EH Bildu, and their proposal has been defeated by only two votes, 35 to 33.

That the controversy of Garzón and meat is not understood without the imminence of the elections in Castilla y León has been evidenced in the spokesperson chosen by the PP to defend its request: Milagros Marcos, former councilor of the Board of that autonomous community.

In the escalation of her accusations, Marcos has gone so far as to say that the Government "has decided to put an end to the rural world."

Vox has requested the resignation not only of the Minister of Consumption, but of the entire Executive, while Ciudadanos criticized Garzón while praising the head of Agriculture, Luis Planas, for distancing himself from his statements.

The Socialists have left no room for criticism on this occasion and have joined United We Can's arguments that the right has distorted the words of the Minister of Consumer Affairs.

The rest of the left and the PNV have also joined Garzón's defense.