Alba Vergés i Bosch (born 3 September 1978) is a

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

economist and politician who is current serving as the First Vice President of the Parliament of Catalonia since 2021 and as Acting

President of the Parliament of Catalonia This article lists the presidents of the Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia ( ca, Parlament de Catalunya, ; es, Parlamento de Cataluña; oc, Parlament de Catalonha) is the unicameral legislature of the autonomous communi ...

since 2022.

Early life

Vergés was born on 3 September 1978 in

Igualada Igualada () is a municipality in the province of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. It is located on the left bank of the Anoia River and at the western end of the Igualada-Martorell-Barcelona Railway. Igualada is the capital and central market of th ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. She has a degree in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics analyzes ...

from the

University of Barcelona The University of Barcelona ( ca, Universitat de Barcelona, UB; ; es, link=no, Universidad de Barcelona) is a public university located in the city of Barcelona, Catalonia, in Spain. With 63,000 students, it is one of the biggest universities i ...

and a degree in technical engineering in computer management from the

Open University of Catalonia The Open University of Catalonia ( ca, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya, UOC; ) is a private open university based in Barcelona, Spain. The UOC offers graduate and postgraduate programs in Catalan, Spanish and English in fields such as Psycholog ...

Career

Vergés worked as an economist in the

elderly care Elderly care, or simply eldercare (also known in parts of the English-speaking world as aged care), serves the needs and requirements of senior citizens. It encompasses assisted living, adult daycare, long-term care, nursing homes (often call ...

and as a junior programmer in

information and communications technology Information and communications technology (ICT) is an extensional term for information technology (IT) that stresses the role of unified communications and the integration of telecommunications ( telephone lines and wireless signals) and computer ...

, developing clothing store management software. She was an administrative officer at the Colegio Oficial de Agentes Comerciales de Barcelona in

Anoia Anoia () is a comarca (county) in central Catalonia, Spain, with its capital at Igualada. The comarca of l'Anoia is irrigated by the Anoia River; the leading industry is the making of paper. To the north are Solsonès and Bages, to the west, ...

and in charge of administration, accounting and finance at the Sociosanitario Consortium of Igualada, an organisation that manages public elder care centres, from 2008 to 2012. JuntsPelSi presenta candidats 6360

Vergés joined the

Republican Left of Catalonia The Republican Left of Catalonia ( ca, Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya, ERC; ; generically branded as ) is a pro-Catalan independence, social-democratic political party in the Spanish autonomous community of Catalonia, with a presence also i ...

(ERC) in 2011 and became president of its Igualada branch in 2012. She is a member of the

Assemblea Nacional Catalana The Assemblea Nacional Catalana ("Catalan National Assembly"; ANC by its Catalan acronym) is an organization that seeks the political independence of Catalonia from Spain. It also promotes the independence of other Catalan-speaking regions, whic ...

and La Teixidora. At the 2011 local elections Puigneró was placed 3rd on the Republican Left of Catalonia-

Reagrupament Reagrupament or Reagrupament Independentista (''Realignment for Independence'' or ''Independence Rally'') is an association in Catalonia, Spain, formally constituted on 3 October 2009. It is an umbrella group for various supporters of Catalan ind ...

-Acord Municipal

electoral alliance An electoral alliance (also known as a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral pact, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc) is an association of political parties or individuals that exists solely to stand in elections. E ...

's list of candidates in Igualada but the alliance only managed to win two seats in the municipality and as a result she was not elected. Vergés contested the 2012 regional election as a

Republican Left of Catalonia–Catalonia Yes Republican Left of Catalonia–Catalonia Yes ( ca, Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya–Catalunya Sí, ERC–CatSí) is a Catalan pro-independence electoral alliance. The alliance is formed by Republican Left of Catalonia, Catalonia Yes and in ...

(ERC–CatSí) electoral alliance candidate in the

Province of Barcelona Barcelona (, ) is a province of eastern Spain, in the center of the autonomous community of Catalonia. The province is bordered by the provinces of Tarragona, Lleida, and Girona, and by the Mediterranean Sea. Its area is .Parliament of Catalonia The Parliament of Catalonia ( ca, Parlament de Catalunya, ; es, Parlamento de Cataluña; oc, Parlament de Catalonha) is the unicameral legislature of the autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 mem ...

. She was re-elected at the 2015 and

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

regional elections. She was elected to the Board of the Parliament of Catalonia as Fourth Secretary on 17 January 2018. Govern de Catalunya foto oficial 2018

On 19 May 2018 newly elected

President of Catalonia The President of the Government of Catalonia ( ca, President de la Generalitat de Catalunya, ) is one of the bodies that the Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia stipulates as part of the Generalitat de Catalunya, others being the Parliament, the gov ...

Quim Torra Joaquim Torra i Pla (; born 28 December 1962), known as Quim Torra, is a Catalan lawyer and journalist from Spain. He served as President of the Government of Catalonia from 17 May 2018 to 28 September 2020, when the Supreme Court of Spain conf ...

nominated a new government in which Toni Comín, who was in living in exile, was to be

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental health. Coun ...

. However, the

Spanish government gl, Goberno de España eu, Espainiako Gobernua , image = , caption = Logo of the Government of Spain , headerstyle = background-color: #efefef , label1 = Role , data1 = Executive power , label2 = Established , da ...

condemned the inclusion of jailed/exiled politicians in the government as provocative and refused to approve Torra's appointments or to revoke

direct rule Direct rule is when an imperial or central power takes direct control over the legislature, executive and civil administration of an otherwise largely self-governing territory. Examples Chechnya In 1991, Chechen separatists declared independence ...

. Faced with this opposition Torra announced a new government on 29 May 2018 without the jailed/exiled politicians. Vergés was to be Minister of Health in the new government. She was sworn in on 2 June 2018 at the

Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya The Palau de la Generalitat de Catalunya is a historic palace in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It houses the offices of the Presidency of the Generalitat de Catalunya. It is one of the few buildings of medieval origin in Europe that still function ...

. She resigned as Fourth Secretary on 4 June 2018 and as an MP on 14 June 2018.

Electoral history

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Vergés, Alba 1978 births Fourth Secretaries of the Parliament of Catalonia Health ministers of Catalonia Living people Members of the 10th Parliament of Catalonia Members of the 11th Parliament of Catalonia 21st-century Spanish women politicians Members of the 12th Parliament of Catalonia People from Igualada Republican Left of Catalonia politicians Torra Government University of Barcelona alumni Women members of the Parliament of Catalonia