Spain’s conservative People’s Party continues to toughen its stance on migration by proposing a law that would revoke the Spanish citizenship of naturalised foreigners who commit serious crimes in the country.
Spain’s main opposition party, the Partido Popular, this week announced a new measure which further consolidates its intention to appear tough on migration.
The leader of the conservative PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, confirmed that his party is working on a new law to regulate Spanish nationality.
One of the key points of this law is that foreigners who obtain Spanish nationality will have it revoked if they commit a serious crime.
“Granting citizenship is the greatest act of trust, the most reliable title a state can bestow,” Feijóo explained during a recent visit to a new public housing development in Madrid. He confirmed that “when it is breached,” this right must be revoked.
“Those who come, apply for it, and abide by the laws will retain it,” the 65-year-old Galician politician added.
Feijóo described several scenarios where naturalised foreigners may lose their Spanish nationality, including those who are part of criminal gangs, terrorist groups, repeat offenders of sexual abuse, assault, or murder.
“It will allow us to address the frivolity involved and reconsider the loss of nationality”, he stated.
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Nationals from 19 Ibero-American countries, Andorra, the Philippines, Equatorial Guinea, Portugal, and people of Sephardic origin can apply for Spanish citizenship after two years of legal residency.
The PP leader justified his proposal by stating that it “draws from the legal systems of the most reputable countries in the European Union”.
The proposal will be presented to the Spanish Parliament, where it will have to undergo an approval process, although it remains unclear when it will be presented.
Over the past two years, the PP has toughened its stance on immigration, residency and citizenship as a way of competing with far-right party Vox, who has been taking voters from the conservatives, mainly as a result of disillusionment with the PP’s more moderate policies.
Last year, Feijóo presented a raft of policies which included a points-based visa system, no permanent residency without integration and tougher language and cultural exams for Spanish citizenship.
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Many of these resemble policies proposed by Vox, who also presented last July a proposal to revoke the Spanish citizenship of naturalised foreigners who commit serious crimes.
In it, they said their aim was to “strengthen the State’s response to criminal activity carried out by foreigners”.
Part of this included revoking nationality from those who committed crimes, as well as bilateral agreements to get foreigners to serve out prison sentences in their own countries.
Spain’s opposition centre-right PP is currently ahead in polls and has been for some time. Along with Vox, they account for more than half of the estimated vote share – 50.2 percent – compared with the 45.5 percent they secured at the polls in July 2023.
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This is the first time in three years that the right-wing bloc in Spain has crossed the 50 percent polling threshold amid the political fallout from the Ceuta migrant crisis, suggesting that they may be able to govern with an absolute majority at the next general election, scheduled to happen in August 2027.
A larger parliamentary share for PP and Vox, along with the right-wing majority in the Spanish Senate currently, increases the likelihood of policies such as the revocation of Spanish citizenship from foreign criminals.
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