Josep Piqué i Camps (born 21 February 1955 in

Vilanova i la Geltrú Vilanova i la Geltrú () is the capital city of Garraf '' comarca'', in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Historically a fishing port, the city has a growing population of approximately 66,000, and is situated 40 km south-west of ...

) is a Spanish politician of the right-leaning

Spanish People's Party The People's Party ( es, Partido Popular ; known mostly by its acronym, PP ) is a conservative and Christian-democratic political party in Spain. The People's Party was a 1989 re-foundation of People's Alliance (AP), a party led by former m ...

(PP) who represented

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

. Pique was initially a member of the

Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia The Unified Socialist Party of Catalonia ( ca, Partit Socialista Unificat de Catalunya, PSUC) was a Communism, communist political party active in Catalonia between 1936 and 1997. It was the Catalan branch of the Communist Party of Spain and the o ...

(PSUC) but left the grouping and subsequently joined the Union of the Democratic Centre.

Political career

Between 1986 and 1988, Piqué served as Director General of Industry under the

Convergence and Union Convergence and Union ( ca, Convergència i Unió, CiU; ) was a Catalan nationalist electoral alliance in Catalonia, Spain. It was a federation of two constituent parties, the larger Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC) and its smaller coun ...

government of Catalonia. After the People's Party election in 1996, Piqué was appointed Spanish Minister for Industry as an independent member. He served as Spain's foreign minister from 2000 to 2002. In this capacity, he steered Spain’s foreign policy during its six-month

presidency of the Council of the European Union The presidency of the Council of the European Union is responsible for the functioning of the Council of the European Union, which is the co-legislator of the EU legislature alongside the European Parliament. It rotates among the member state ...

. As part of a cabinet reshuffle, he was replaced by

Ana de Palacio y del Valle-Lersundi Ana Isabel de Palacio y del Valle Lersundi (born 22 July 1948) in Madrid, daughter of Luis María de Palacio y de Palacio, 4th Marqués de Matonte, and wife Luisa Mariana del Valle Lersundi y del Valle, was Spain's minister for foreign affairs ...

and instead took over the

Ministry of Science and Technology A Science Ministry or Department of Science is a ministry or other government agency charged with science. The ministry is often headed by a Minister for Science. List of Ministries of Science Many countries have a Ministry of Science or Ministry ...

, which oversees the telecommunications industry. At the time, he was thought to have paid the price for failing to resolve the protracted dispute with the UK over the future of

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

. Piqué was the president of the ''Partit Popular de Catalunya'' from October 2002. He resigned from this position in July 2007 after disagreement over the political direction that the central PP (Partido Popular, People's Party) wanted to impose over the

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 ...

branch of the party. After serving in the Spanish Congress from 2000 he resigned in 2003 after being elected to 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 community of Catalonia, Spain. The Parliament is currently made up of 135 mem ...

Life after politics

Between November 2007 and 2013, Piqué served as

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of low-cost carrier Vueling Airlines. In November 2008, Piqué was co-chair of the Global China Business Meeting 2008 in

Madrid Madrid ( , ) is the capital and most populous city of Spain. The city has almost 3.4 million inhabitants and a metropolitan area population of approximately 6.7 million. It is the second-largest city in the European Union (EU), and ...

. From November 2008 until June 2009, Piqué served as member of a six-member panel of EU experts advising the Bulgarian government. Set up by Bulgaria's

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Sergei Stanishev Sergey Dmitrievich Stanishev ( bg, Сергей Дмитриевич Станишев ; born 5 May 1966) is a Bulgarian politician who is serving as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP). He previously served as President of the Party of Eu ...

, the advisory board was chaired by

Dominique de Villepin Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin (; born 14 November 1953) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007 under President Jacques Chirac. In his career working at the Ministry ...

and mandated to recommend ways to help the country adjust to EU membership. In addition, Piqué serves on the Political Sponsorship Committee of the Institut de Prospective Economique du Monde Méditerranéen (IPEMED). In 2009 he launched PANGEA21 Consultora Internacional, a small firm in Barcelona to provide consulting services and management advice in all kinds of international business. He was appointed member of the Board of Directors of

Amadeus IT Group Amadeus IT Group, S.A. () is a major Spanish IT provider for the global travel and tourism industry. Company profile The company is structured around two areas: its global distribution system and its Information Technology business. Amadeus pro ...

in June 2019.

References

"Missing the Barcelona bourgeoisie", Josep Piqué
Barcelona Metropolis, 2008. , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pique I Camps, Josep 1955 births Living people People from Vilanova i la Geltrú Industry ministers of Spain Foreign ministers of Spain Members of the Parliament of Catalonia Members of the 7th Congress of Deputies (Spain) People's Party (Spain) politicians Directors of Abengoa Directors of Amadeus IT Group