Spanish Anti-Austerity Party Podemos Presents Policies to IMF

Spain's new anti-austerity party Podemos on Friday presented its economic proposals to representatives of the International Monetary Fund in Spain, the party said in a statement.

"This meeting, which is the result of an IMF request made to Podemos, is part of a series of meetings which the international body is having with Spanish political parties and economic actors during its visit to the country," the statement said.

The meetings follows last month's regional and local elections in Spain in which Podemos, a close ally of Greece's ruling Syriza, did well.

The party came third in 12 of the 13 Spanish regions that voted last month, alongside more than 8,000 towns and cities, after campaigning hard against corruption and economic inequality in a country where one in four workers is unemployed.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy's ruling Popular Party lost its majority in most regions, transforming the dynamic of Spanish politics ahead of a general election due in November.

Podemos was represented at the meeting by its social and political analysis secretary, Carolina Bescansa, and Nacho Alvarez, who is responsible for the economics area of its "Citizens Council", the statement said.

Podemos has frequently criticised the "troika" of the European Union, European Central Bank, and International Monetary Fund for imposing tought austerity measures on eurozone nations like Greece in exchange for international bailout funds.

The party has previously vowed to push for Spain's debt to be restructured if it came to power but has recently softened its stance.

Podemos' pony-tailed leader Pablo Iglesias refused to be drawn on its position after the local elections, saying only that Spain's level of economic growth and  unemployment level should be taken into account.