Among the victims of the Spanish train crash is Fátima Báñez, former Minister of Labour under Rajoy.

Madrid. Among the 74 victims of the train crash in Urda (Toledo) is a familiar, yet always discreet, figure in Spanish politics. Fátima Báñez was president of the CEÖE Foundation (linked to the Confederation of Business Organisations); she was 59 years old and had served as Minister of Labour in the government of Mariano Rajoy of the People’s Party. The press recalls her talent for dialogue, which led her to hold key roles for the PP, both in Spain and in Europe, where she had become friends with her German counterpart at the time, Ursula von der Leyen, who supported her in labour reform.

Rajoy had already turned to her for another delicate mission: to negotiate with the liberals of Ciudadanos for support for his government, after the PP had lost its majority. With the 29 November elections drawing ever closer, Báñez had returned to the shortlist of potential candidates for a future PP government led by Alberto Núñez Feijóo. Tragically, on Wednesday, Fátima boarded a rear carriage of that Iryo train, which had come to a halt on the tracks, when another train collided with it.