Pedro Solbes

Spain's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance

Pedro Solbes was born in 1942 in Pinoso (a village in the province of Alicante).

He has a degree in European Economics from the Université Libre de Bruxelles and a degree in Law from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid. He became a Doctor in in Political Science in the same University in Madrid.

From 1968-1973 he was Regional sub-delegate and delegate for Trade in Valencia and between 1973 and 1978 he formed part of the Spanish Mission to the European Community. From 1978 to 1979 he was advisor to President Calvo Sotelo on relations between Spain and the European Community. Pedro Solbes played an important part in the negotiations for Spanish accession to the European Community. In 1985, he was appointed by President Felipe Gonzalez Spanish Secretary of State for Relations with the EC.

Solbes served in two ministries under Gonzalez:

• Minister of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries 1991-1993
• Minister of Economic and Financial Affairs in 1993 - 1996.

In September 1999 he became the European Commissioner of Economic and Monetary Affairs - a particularly challenging post given the imminent entry into the European Union of 10 new member states. During his time in the European Commission, Solbes was charged with overseeing the rules underpinning Europe's single currency.

Pedro Solbes is married and has a son and a daughter. He speaks English, French, German and Catalan.

• Personal Page as European Commissioner - includes speeches and press releases.
• Statement by Pedro Solbes to the International Monetary and Financial Committee, Dubai September 21, 2003.
• Solbes, in farewell message, tells EU economies to buck up