9TH LEGISLATURE

Area Creation Decree (PDF document in Spanish)

PRESIDENT

PATXI LÓPEZ ÁLVAREZ

Portugalete (Bizkaia, 1959)
Married

Son of one of the most important figures in the history of Basque Socialism, Eduardo López Albizu, "Lalo", who was President of PSE-EE (PSOE) for Bizkaia.

He joined the Socialist Youth Movement in 1975, and was elected for the position of Secretary General of the Socialist Youth Movement for the Basque Country in 1985, a post which he held until 1988.

He joined the Socialist Party of the Basque Country in 1977, and became a member of its Executive Committee in 1988.

He took on the job of Director of the Organisation Secretariat of the Basque Country in 1991 and resigned from this post to take responsibility for the Institutional Secretariat of the Socialists of Bizkaia from 1995 to 1997.

In October that year, he was chosen Secretary General of the PSE-EE (PSOE) of Bizkaia and was re-elected in December 2000.

Member of the Federal Committee of the PSOE.

On March 23 2002, he was elected Secretary General of the Basque Socialists at the Extraordinary Congress held in San Sebastián. He has held this post since he was re-elected on October 29 2005, at the Ordinary Congress of the PSE-EE (PSOE) held in Bilbao.

He was elected Member of Paarliament for Bizkaia to the Congress of Deputies between 1988-1990, and was one of the youngest deputies during that legislature.

Member of the Basque Parliament since 1991. Today, he has been President of the Parliamentary Group "Basque Socialists-Euskal Sozialistak" since 2002.

He was Candidate for Lehendakari at the last Autonomous Community Elections in 2005 and 2009.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF THE INTERIOR

RODOLFO ARES

Orense (1956)
Married
Industrial Engineering Technician

During the period 1983-1990, he was Deputy Mayor and Delegate of the Government Planning, Traffic and Transport Department of Bilbao City Hall, as well as Spokesperson for the Municipal Socialist Group.

In 1990, he was the first Vice-President of the Provincial Government and Councillor for Urban Planning and the Environment of the Provincial Government of Bizkaia.

Member of the Provincial Executive Committee of the PSE-EE (PSOE) in Bizkaia.  In 1995, at the Basque Socialist Congress, he became Area Coordination Secretary and Election Coordinator of the Executive Committee of the Basque Country of PSE-EE (PSOE).

He has been Member of the Basque Parliament for Bizkaia since 1994.

He has held a range of different positions within the Parliamentary Group of the Basque Socialists. He was Spokesperson for this group during the period 2000-2005. Today he is representative of PSE-EE on the Home Affairs and Victims Committee.

He has been member of the Federal Committee of the PSOE and of the Federal Executive Committee since 2004.

At the 5th Congress of Basque Socialists, held in Bilbao on October 29-30 2005, he was elected Secretary for Coordination and Organisation Spokesperson of the Executive Committee of the Basque Country.

At the 37th Congress of the PSOE, he was re-elected member of the Federal Executive Committee.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF EDUCATION, UNIVERSITIES AND RESEARCH

ISABEL CELAÁ

Bilbao
Married

ACADEMIC QUALIFICATIONS

Graduate in Philosophy and English Philology from the Universities of Deusto and Valladolid

Law graduate.

Professor of English Language and Literature.

EGA (Basque language qualification).

Links to Irish culture. Has lived in Belfast and Dublin.

POLITICAL CAREER

Member of the Executive Committee of the Basque Country of PSE-EE (PSOE).

First Vice President of the Basque Parliament Committee and Deputy Spokesperson of the "Basque Socialists" group until April 2009.

Directed the advisory team of José Ramón Recalde in the Education, Universities and Research Department until 1991.

Was Authorised Representative of the General Councils of Vizcaya.

Was Regional Deputy Minister for Education with Fernando Buesa from 1991 to 1995.

Vice President of the Schools Council of the Basque Country and President-delegate of the Basque Vocational Training Council during that time.

Was member of the Governing Council of EMAKUNDE during those years. 
 
Directed the advisory team of Ramón Jauregui in the Justice, Economy, Employment and Social Security Department. 1995 - 1998.

Since October 1998, she has been Member of Parliament for Bizkaia of the PSE-EE, spokesperson of the Basque Socialist Group in the Basque Parliament for Education, Culture and the Media.

First Secretary of the Basque Parliament Committee until 2003.

REGIONAL ECONOMICS AND TREASURY MINISTER

CARLOS AGUIRRE

Bilbao (1957)

Graduate in Business Studies from the Basque University.

Since 1998, he has been Corporate Director of Human Resources, quality and Systems of the Basque Energy Board.
 
Regular collaborator of the Socialist Party of the Basque Country for more than two decades, he formed part of its economic team and he chaired the economics committee at the last policy congress.

Expert in economic policy and regional policy, he also has long experience in budgetary matters as he has been behind the negotiations of the General Budgets of the Autonomous Community for the last 20 years.

His professional career began in 1978 in the banking sector. In 1981, he joined the Studies and Statistics Department of the Bilbao Chamber of Commerce. He joined the Basque Energy Board in 1985.

In July 1987, he began a long professional career in the Basque Government, firstly as Planning Director. In 1991, he took up a post as Director for Economic Affairs of the Vice Presidency of the Basque Government and from 1995 to 1998, he was Economics and Planning Director. Throughout that period, he was responsible for Economic Planning, Regional Policy, the Economic Situation and Planning. Among other posts, he has been member of the management and governing boards of SPRI (Basque Development Agency), the ZID (Declining Industrialised Zones) of the Basque Country, PROGESINSA (Industrial Land Promotion and Management Agency), VISESA (Public Housing and Land Agency of the Basque Country), Eusko Trenbideak /Basque railways, Bizkaia Transport Consortium (Bilbao Metropolitan Railway management entity), EGAILAN (Public Agency for the Promotion of Employment and Training in the Basque Country), Bilbao Metrópoli 30, Basque Statistics Board and the magazine "Ekonomiaz". Likewise, he has formed part of a number of different committees within the Autonomous Community of the Basque Country, the most relevant of which include Foreign Trade Promotion, Pricing, Regional Policy and Science and Technology. He also been member of the working group entrusted with the job of formulating a strategy for revamping and modernising the Basque Public Administration. Lastly, he has formed part of a number of different national and international forums and committees, such as the Public Investments Committee of the State and the Committee for regional development and restructuring of the European Commission.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF JUSTICE AND PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

IDOIA MENDIA

Bilbao (1965)

Graduate in Law from the University of Deusto.

Post graduate degree in European and International Relations from the University of Amsterdam.

Profession: lawyer.

Political experience

Member of the Executive of the PSE for Bizkaia, Employment and Training Secretariat.

Member of the Basque Parliament since 2002.

Councillor of Barrika Town Hall since 2003.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF HOUSING, PUBLIC WORKS AND TRANSPORT

IÑAKI ARRIOLA

Eibar (Gipuzkoa, 1959)
Married

Academic training

Graduate in Law.

University of the Basque Country UPV (Gipuzkoa).

Political experience

1991 - 1993 Member of Basque Parliament

1993 - 2008 Mayor of Eibar. Two consecutive absolute majorities.

1993 - 2008 member of the committee of the PSE-EE

Currently spokesperson of the "Basque Socialists-Euskal Sozialistak" group. Secretary General of the PSE-EE for Gipuzkoa, member of the Executive Committee of the Basque Country and President of the local group for Eibar.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF INDUSTRY AND INNOVATION

BERNABÉ UNDA

Bilbao (1956)

Naval Engineer from the Higher Technical School of Naval Engineers of Madrid.

1991-1994, Director of Assemblies and Installations Department of Izar

1999-2005, Managing Director of the Sestao shipyard. He led the liquid natural gas ship construction project.

From 2005 to 2008, General Industrial Director of Navantia. Responsible for the industrial Department of the company, supervising engineering functions, R&D&I, supplies, production and planning and the Ferrol, Cartagena and Bahía de Cádiz shipyards.

Since December 2008, he has been Coordination Director of Navantia. Responsible for technical management, R&D&I and the organisation of quality matters in the company. Responsible for General Coordination, acting by delegation on behalf of the President.

REGIONAL MINISTER OF EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS

GENMA ZABALETA

Donostia (1957)

Graduate in Spanish Philology from the University of Deusto.

Professor of Spanish Language and Literature.

Director of Pedagogic Renovation in the Education Department of the Basque Government. (1987-1991).

Social Services Councillor of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa. (1993-1996).

Senator for Gipuzkoa. (1993-1996).

Spokesperson of the Health and Social Affairs committee and member of the Socialist Parliamentary Group management committee

Member of the advisory team of the Regional Minister for Employment and Social Security. (1996-1998).

Member of the Basque Parliament since 1998.

Spokesperson for Social Affairs and member of the Employment and Social Action committee.
Committee on social laws passed during the last legislature and representative of the PSE-EE in the materialisation of the Social Agreement with the last tripartite government.

Councillor of Urretxu Town Hall since 2007.

Member of the Provincial Executive of the PSE-EE of Gipuzkoa.

Has been Institutional Secretary of the PSE-EE and candidate for the post of General Secretary.

Co-authoress with Denis Itxaso of the book "Con mano izquierda: una propuesta ante el colapso vasco".

REGIONAL MINISTER OF HEALTH AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS

RAFAEL BENGOA

Bilbao (1952)

Training

Doctor of Medicine. University of the Basque Country.

Masters degree in Health Systems Management and in Community Health. London University. England.

Senior Fellow of the Business School of the University of Manchester. England.

Hospital Management Diploma. Deusto.

Experience

At a national level, he was co-author of social policy and health management documents intended for the Spanish Parliament.

Co-author of "The April Report". Report on the Analysis and Improvement in the Management of the Health System. 1991

Director of the Report "Health: Potential Reform". ESADE. 1997.

At an Autonomous Region level, in the Regional Health Ministry of 1991-1995. (Regional Minister: Iñaki Azkuna )

Director of Health Planning in the Basque Country. 1991 - 1995

Responsible for the design of the restructuring of the Health Sector:  Osasuna Zainduz passed by the Basque Parliament in 1995.

At an international level, he worked for 15 years in the World Health Organisation.

Today

Academic world:   National:    Collaborator lecturer ESADE , University of Ramón Llull. Barcelona and Madrid. Teaches Leadership in Health Systems.

International:  Collaborator lecturer at McGill University. Masters degree in Leadership in Health. Directed by Professor Henry Mintzberg. Montreal.  Canada.

Management world:   Director of Kroniker: International Observatory of Quality and Management of Chronic Diseases (Bilbao).

REGIONAL MINISTER FOR THE ENVIRONMENT, TERRITORIAL PLANNING, AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES

PILAR UNZALU

Iturrieta (Alava)

Law graduate. Lecturer in Ethics and Legislation at the University School of Nursing (1985-1989).

Civil servant in the Provincial Council of Alava. Director of Urban Planning, Architecture and the Environment in the Provincial Council of Alava (1995-1997).

Member of the General Councils (1999-2000).

Member of the Basque Parliament (legislatures 6 and 7).

At this time, Member of the Spanish Parliament (8th legislature).

REGIONAL MINISTER OF CULTURE

BLANCA URGELL

Vitoria-Gasteiz

PhD in Basque Philology from the University of the Basque Country.

Lecturer in the Department of Linguistics and Basque Studies of the University of the Basque Country.

Has taken part in a large number of research projects and is the author of several articles and papers relating to her professional activity.

Among the large number of academic posts held, of special relevance is her collaboration in the preparation of the General Basque Dictionary of the Basque Language Academy-Eukaltzaindia, as well as the "History of the Basque language" by Koldo Mitxelena

She has also been editor and member of the Editorial Council of the Basque Philology Seminar Yearbook "Julio de Urquijo", is member of the Advisory Council of the magazine "Sancho el Sabio", as well as the magazine "Gogoa". She has also coordinated the "Klasikoak" collection of Edición de Textos Vascos together with Patxi Altuna, Ibon Sarasola and Joseba A. Lacarra.