Dolors Montserrat i Montserrat (Catalan pronunciation: [duˈloz munsəˈrat]; born 18 September 1973) is a Spanish lawyer and politician who serves as Member of the European Parliament. Previously, she served as Minister of Health, Social Services and Equality of Spain from 2016 to 2018, when a vote of no-confidence against Mariano Rajoy ousted the government.
Dolors Montserrat | |
---|---|
Dolors Montserrat in 2017 | |
Vice-Chair of the European People's Party in the European Parliament | |
Assumed office 19 June 2024[1] | |
Chair | |
Serving alongside | |
Preceded by | |
Member of the European Parliament for Spain | |
Assumed office 2 July 2019 | |
Minister of Health, Social Services and Equality | |
In office 4 November 2016 – 1 June 2018 | |
Monarch | Felipe VI |
Prime Minister | Mariano Rajoy |
Preceded by | Alfonso Alonso |
Succeeded by | Carmen Montón |
Third Vice President of the Congress | |
In office 13 December 2011 – 13 January 2016 | |
President | Jesús Posada |
Preceded by | Jorge Fernández Díaz |
Succeeded by | Gloria Elizo |
Member of the Congress of Deputies | |
In office 1 March 2008 – 21 May 2019 | |
Constituency | Barcelona |
Personal details | |
Born | Dolors Montserrat i Montserrat 18 September 1973 Sant Sadurní d'Anoia, Spain |
Political party | People's Party |
Alma mater | Abat Oliba CEU University ESADE University of Barcelona |
In addition, Montserrat has also been Member of the Congress of Deputies in the Cortes Generales between 2008 and 2019 by Barcelona. She is the daughter of the businesswoman, and also politician of the People's Party, Dolors Montserrat i Culleré.
Early life and education
editMontserrat studied in her hometown, although she finished her pre-university studies in the United States. She later obtained a law degree from the Abat Oliva CEU University in Barcelona and she obtained a master's degree from the School of Law Practice of the Bar Association of Barcelona and since 1997 she has specialized in urban, real estate and environmental law. She also carried out a Community Agrarian Law Program taught by the University of Ferrara (Italy), a postgraduate degree in Urban and Real Estate Law from Pompeu Fabra University, a postgraduate course in Mediation and Negotiation from the University of Barcelona, a Real Estate Law program and urban planning provided by ESADE and a program of management of real estate companies taught by IESE.
Political career
editCareer in national politics
editMontserrat has been regent and spokesperson of the People's Party in Sant Sadurní d'Anoia City Council since 2007, member of the Executive Committee of the PP of Catalonia and deputy for the province of Barcelona to the Spanish general election of 2008 and 2011. In the 10th legislature occupied, between 2011 and 2016, the third vice presidency of the Congress of the Deputies.[2]
In May 2012, Montserrat acceded to the Deputy Secretariat for Organization and Social Action of the PP of Catalonia, in the remodeling of the leadership resulting from its 13th Congress.[3]
Montserrat has been president of the Board of Young Cofrades of Cava of Sant Sadurní d'Anoia.[4]
On 4 November 2016, Montserrat swore her office as Minister of Health, Social Services and Equality in the government of Mariano Rajoy.[5] In 2017, she led the Spanish government’s unsuccessful campaign to host the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in Barcelona.[6] She was rejected by the Congress of Deputies for her mismanagement of the Ministry on 29 May 2018.[7] On 26 July 2018, was named spokesperson of the PP parliamentary group after Rajoy Government was ousted and Pablo Casado was elected president of the party.[8]
Member of the European Parliament
editFor the 2019 European Parliament election Montserrat was the head candidate for Spain with the People's Party.[9] As Member of the European Parliament, she serves as the chair of the Committee on Petitions and member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety. In this capacity, she is the Parliament’s rapporteur on the EU’s pharmaceutical strategy.[10] She later also joined the Special Committee on Beating Cancer (2020)[11] and the Special Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic (2022).[12][13] Since 2021, she has been part of the Parliament's delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe.[14]
In addition to her committee assignments, Montserrat is part of the MEPs Against Cancer group[15] and the European Parliament Intergroup on Children’s Rights.[16]
In March 2024, Montserrat was one of twenty MEPs to be given a "Rising Star" award at The Parliament Magazine's annual MEP Awards[17]
Political positions
editMontserrat is an outspoken opponent of the Catalan independence movement.[18]
References
edit- ^ "Manfred Weber and the new EPP Group leadership team elected". www.eppgroup.eu.
- ^ "Tres catalans formaran part de la nova Mesa del Congrés". www.elperiódico.cat. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
- ^ Tugas, R.; Gonzalez, S. "Dolors Montserrat Montserrat i Enric Millo guanyen pes en la nova direcció del PP". www.ara.cat. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
- ^ Montserrat, Dolors. "Ficha del Congreso de los Diputados". www.congreso.es. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
- ^ "Dolors Montserrat jura su puesto al frente del ministerio de Sanidad, Servicios sociales e Igualdad". www.abc.es. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
- ^ Ben Hirschler (24 May 2017), Rivals fight for post-Brexit EU agencies ahead of October decision Politico Europe.
- ^ El Congreso reprueba a la ministra de Sanidad (in Spanish)
- ^ https://www.20minutos.es/noticia/3404161/0/nombramientos-comite-ejecutivo-pp-casado/ (in Spanish)
- ^ El plan B de Casado para Bruselas: Pons en el PPE y Montserrat portavoz del grupo español (in Spanish)
- ^ Carlo Martuscelli (July 19, 2021), Big Pharma wants a say as EU revamps industry rules Politico Europe.
- ^ Members of the Special Committee on Beating Cancer European Parliament, press release of 9 July 2020.
- ^ Members of the Special Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic European Parliament.
- ^ Parliament names MEPs to sit on three new committees European Parliament, press release of 24 March 2022.
- ^ Members of the delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe Archived 10 June 2021 at the Wayback Machine European Parliament.
- ^ MAC MEPs in the 2019–24 legislature Archived 2 February 2020 at the Wayback Machine MEPs Against Cancer.
- ^ Intergroup on Children’s Rights European Parliament.
- ^ "MEP Awards 2024 - The Rising Stars". The Parliament Magazine. 21 March 2024. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ David M. Herszenhorn (26 April 2019), French populists, a former PM and Bunga Bunga — the new faces of the European Parliament Politico Europe.