Carlos Solchaga

Carlos Solchaga Catalán (born 28 March 1944) is a Spanish economist, businessman and politician, who served in different capacities at various Spanish cabinets.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Solchaga and the second or maternal family name is Catalán.
Carlos Solchaga
Minister of Economy and Finance
In office
July 1985 – 1993
Prime MinisterFelipe González
Preceded byMiguel Boyer
Succeeded byPedro Solbes
Minister of Industry and Energy
In office
1982 – July 1985
Prime MinisterFelipe González
Personal details
Born
Carlos Solchaga Catalán

(1944-03-28) 28 March 1944
Tafalla (Navarre), Spain
NationalitySpanish
Political partySocialist Party (Until 1994)
Alma materComplutense University of Madrid
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Early life and education

Solchaga was born in Tafalla in 1944.[1] He holds a bachelor's degree in economics and business studies which he obtained from Madrid's Complutense University in 1966.[2][3] He received a master's degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1971.[2]

Career

Solchaga began his career at the Bank of Spain.[2][4] He was the economic studies manager and advisor at Banco de Vizcaya from 1976 to 1979.[5] Then he served as a minister for trade of the Basque general council of Spain from 1979 to 1980.[5] He was the member of the Spanish Parliament from 1980 to 1995, representing Navarre Province, being part of the Socialist Party.[2] He was one of the party officials who developed neo-liberal economic program[6] and was among right-wing leaders of the party.[7]

His first ministerial post was the minister for industry and energy,[8] which he held from 1982 to 1985 in the first cabinet of Felipe Gonzalez Marquez.[5][9] In a reshuffle of July 1985, Solchaga was appointed economy and finance minister to the cabinet again led by Prime Minister Gonzalez.[10][11] He replaced Miguel Boyer in the post.[12][13]

Solchaga resigned from office in July 1993 due to the scandal surrounded the activities of Mariano Rubio, the then governor of the Bank of Spain.[14] The scandal is known as the Ibercorp case.[15][16] Pedro Solbes replaced him as finance minister.[17][18] Solchaga was named as the party's parliamentary leader in July 1993 after leaving office.[17] However, following this period he was gradually marginalized from decision-making mechanism within the party and in 1994, he left the party.[18]

Solchaga was also appointed chairman of the interim committee of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in 1991.[2] His term ended in September 1993[19] and the then finance minister of Belgium, Philippe Maystadt, succeeded him as chairman of the committee.[20]

Next Solchaga began to work in private sector. He has been the international consultant of the Solchaga and Recio Asociados since 1999. He is also the chairman of the Euroamerica Foundation[21] and the vice-chairman of the Reina Sofia National Museum.[5] He is on the board of several institutions, including PRISA and Renta Corporación.[5]

Views

When they were in office both Solchaga and his predecessor Miguel Boyer implemented economic policies based the orthodox liberal ideas, and the social outcomes of these policies were largely neglected.[22] Solchaga continued Boyer's moderation and orthodox economy approach.[23] It was partly because they did not fit into the socialist mould the government projected.[24] Their priority was to reduce inflation using steps to control the money supply, which reinforced the high levels of interest and a strong currency.[24] In addition, like Boyer he objected the approach and views of Alfonso Guerra, then deputy prime minister.[18]

References
  1. "Carlos Solchaga". Biografias y Vidas. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  2. "Directors". Solchaga Recio. Archived from the original on 8 June 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  3. "José Luis Sampedro: Economist who became an inspiration for Spain's anti-austerity movement". The Independent. 29 May 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  4. John Williamson (January 1994). The Political Economy of Policy Reform. Peterson Institute. p. 130. ISBN 978-0-88132-195-1.
  5. "Carlos Solchaga Catalán". Bloomberg Businessweek. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  6. Omar G. Encarnación (8 July 2008). Spanish Politics: Democracy After Dictatorship. Polity. p. 60. ISBN 978-0-7456-3992-5.
  7. Paul Heywood (5 November 2013). Politics and Policy in Democratic Spain: No Longer Different?. Routledge. p. 164. ISBN 978-1-135-23142-2.
  8. Edward Schumacher Spain's leader drops top aides in a big shuffle The New York Times 5 July 1985 Retrieved 19 October 2013
  9. "A new energy model for Spain" (PDF). IDEAS Foundation. 20 May 2009.
  10. "Spanish prime minister reshuffles cabinet". The News and Courier. Madrid. AP. 5 July 1985. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  11. "Spain's Cabinet Reshuffle Reflects Tilt to Political Center". The CS Monitor. 19 March 1991. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  12. Fernando Aguiar. "The Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE), 1879-1988: from Republican to Liberal Socialism" (PDF). IESA Working Papers.
  13. "Spanish Premier `Airs Out` Cabinet, Replaces 6". Chicago Tribune. Madrid. 5 July 1985. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  14. Paul Heywood (1 October 1995). "Sleaze in Spain". Parliamentary Affairs. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  15. Hayley Rabanal (2011). Belén Gopegui: The Pursuit of Solidarity in Post-transition Spain. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. p. 85. ISBN 978-1-85566-233-9.
  16. John Gillingham (2 June 2003). European Integration, 1950-2003: Superstate Or New Market Economy?. Cambridge University Press. p. 220. ISBN 978-0-521-01262-1.
  17. "Vote for Gonzalez as PM paves the way for coalition". Financial Times. 10 July 1993. Archived from the original on 8 July 2013. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  18. Otto Holman (6 December 2012). Integrating Southern Europe: EC Expansion and the Transnationalization of Spain. Routledge. p. 1994. ISBN 978-1-134-80356-9.
  19. 1994 Annual Report of the Executive Board. International Monetary Fund. 1 January 1994. p. 199. ISBN 978-1-4552-8994-3.
  20. "IMF's interim committee selects new chairman". PRNews. 15 September 1993. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  21. "Spanish premier's South American tour to include Venezuela". BBC Monitoring International Reports. 19 January 2005. Retrieved 7 July 2013.
  22. Richard Gillespie (1992). "Factionalism in the Spanish Socialist Party" (PDF). Working Papers Barcelona (59).
  23. John Williamson (January 1994). The Political Economy of Policy Reform. Peterson Institute. p. 198. ISBN 978-0-88132-195-1.
  24. Richard Gillespie (1994). Mediterranean Politics. Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-0-8386-3609-1.
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