Spain's transport minister Óscar Puente resigns after deadly train crash

Spain's Transport Minister Óscar Puente has resigned, six days after a high-speed train collision near the town of Urda, south of Madrid, killed at least 69 people and left dozens injured. He announced his decision in Congress, where he had appeared to set out the circumstances of last Wednesday's crash. "A transport minister in a country like Spain cannot remain in office after two accidents of this seriousness in less than a year," he said, referring also to a deadly crash in January in Andalusia in southern Spain. The Urda disaster happened when a state-operated Renfe high-speed train struck the rear of a stationary train operated by the Iryo company. Puente made the announcement at the end of a congressional session in which he had outlined new rail safety measures and faced questioning from the opposition. He said he had taken the decision immediately after the 28 October disaster but had waited several days before making it public. The minister had been under mounting pressure, with opposition parties and some allies of the government calling on him to step down. Leaked audio recordings published in Spanish media soon after the crash revealed conversations between train drivers and a control centre in the minutes before the disaster. Three recordings between Madrid's control centre and two train drivers appear to show that one high-speed train was given clearance to move even though another train had stalled on the track about 25km (15 miles) ahead. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has said that authorities will "get to the bottom of every last detail of this tragedy".