ABOUT

Education

Master of Law, with distinction, University of Barcelona (1980-85)

Thesis: “Institutionalisation of European Political Cooperation 1969-86”

Career and professional experience within the European Parliament

Director for the Media and Spokesperson of the European Parliament (since July 2006), responsible for:

- as the Spokesperson of the Institution, daily relations with the accredited press and journalists from the Member States;

- chairing institutional press briefings and assisting with press conferences by the President of Parliament;

- managing the human resources and the budget of the Directorate for the media, which is made up of six units comprising some 210 officials and temporary agents;

- chairing and coordinating the Directorate’s Editorial Committee;

- relations with the cabinets (private offices) of the President and Secretary General on questions linked to information and press relations;

- participating on behalf of DG Communications in meetings of the Secretary General of the European Parliament with the secretaries general of the political groups; following meetings of the Conference of Presidents and Bureau of Parliament;

- assisting the President of Parliament during meetings of the European Council and State visits to the European Parliament.

Previous posts in the Parliament

September 1999 – June 2006 

Head of Unit and Head of Division, Press Room and Webpublishing and Head of Unit, Planning and Press Room (Directorate for Information), responsible for:

- advising the Director for Information on relations with the accredited press, coordination of the restricted editorial committee and implementation of reforms to information policy;

- coordination of the management of the press rooms in Brussels and Strasbourg, coordination of an inter-service working group for the setting up and equipping of a new press room at the European Parliament in Brussels;

- planning of the work of the Directorate for Information and the editorial committee, relations with the planning bodies of DG I and DG II and following the legislative planning of the Council and Commission;

- preparation for and following meetings of the secretaries general of the political groups, of the Conference of Presidents of political groups and the Conference of Presidents of parliamentary committees;

- organisation of press discussions and seminars;

- member of the task forces supporting Parliament’s delegation to the Convention on the Charter of Fundamental Right, the Convention on the Future of the European Union and on planning for the European elections of 2004.

January 1997 – July 1999

Press advisor in the Cabinet (Private Office) of the President of the European Parliament, responsible for:

- preparing and supervising interview with the written media, TV and radio;

- contacts with editors, journalists and correspondents from various media, with associations of the press accredited to the European institutions, and with coordinating bodies of European television networks;

- assisting the President during press conferences, notably those organised during European Council meetings and ministerial sessions of the Intergovernmental Conference;

- drafting press releases for the President, Bureau and Conference of Presidents;

- liaison with the Parliament’s press services;

- coordination of the President’s speeches and public remarks;

- following the Regional Policy and Culture committees and sponsorship proposals.

February 1990 – December 1996 

Head of the Spanish sector of the Central Press Division, responsible for:

- coordination of the Spanish language press team;

- following the Institutional Affairs committee, from January 1994, and previously the Legal Affairs and Regional Policy committees.

Professional experience before 1990

- Assistant to Concepció Ferrer MEP 1987-1989;

- Associate professor of International Public Law, Law Faculty, University of Barcelona (1986-1990) and Coordinator of the Seminar on the European Institutions and Community Law (1988-1990);

- From 1980 to 1985, press officer for a number of political organisations in Spain and presenter of a local political news programme on “Radio España – Cadena Catalana”.

Publications

Articles in specialist journals:

El semestre de presidencia española: una perspectiva parlamentaria. Unión Europea Aranzadi, enero 2010

La evolución del proceso de integración europea : un Tratado constitucional para Europa, Unión Europea Aranzadi, ISSN 1579-0452, Vol. 32, Nº 5, 2005, pp. 5-10

 ¿Por qué necesitamos una Constitución? Europa Euskadi, Nº 177, 2005, pp. 5-6

 El método innovador de la convención europea en contraste con el de la conferencia intergubernamental Unión Europea Aranzadi, ISSN 1579-0452, Vol. 31, Nº 4, 2004, pp. 11-19

La política de información y comunicación del Parlamento Europeo, Pliegos de Yuste, Junta de Extremadura, 2008 (publication pending);

Articles in published collections:

Unión Europea, opinión pública y política de información Europa, el Estado de la Unión, editor Susana del Río, Editorial Thomson Aranzadi, Cizur Menor (Navarra), septiembre 2006;

El funcionamiento de la Convención Europea  Parlamentos y regiones en la construcción de Europa : IX Jornadas de la Asociación Española de Letrados de Parlamentos / editor Francesc Pau Vall, 2003, ISBN 84-309-4078-2, pp. 47-70

 Los Diputados en el Parlamento Europeo y los medios de comunicación, dans Parlamento y opinión pública / editor Francesc Pau Vall, 1995, ISBN 84-309-2677-1, pp67-80

La participación del Parlamento Europea en la formación de acuerdos internacionales: situación actual y perspectivas, La cooperación internacional / editor Francisco Aldecoa Luzarraga, 1993, ISBN 84-7585-438-9, pp109-128

El Parlament Europeu i la llengua catalana Actes des Desè Col.loqui Internacional de Llengua i Literatura catalanes. Montserrat Abbey Publications, Barcelona, 1996.

Catalunya i l'ampliació de la Unió Europea dans Catalunya a la Unió Europea. Edicions 62, Barcelona, 2002.

Books:

Guia Europea de la Joventut. Generalitat de Catalunya, 1991 (1st edition) et 1992 (2nd edition);

Others:

Numerous articles on European current affairs in the printed and on-line media.