Magdalena Álvarez

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Magdalena Álvarez Arza is the current Minister of Public Works (Fomento) in Spain. She was born in San Fernando, in the Province of Cádiz, on the 15 February 1952. She is an MP for the PSOE for the Province of Málaga. Previously, she was the Minister for the Economy in the Junta de Andalucía.

[edit] Pre-political life

Álvarez holds with a doctorate cum laude in Economic and Business Science from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and taught Economics at the Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia between 1977 and 1990; at the Escuela de Prácticas Jurídicas in Málaga (1981-1989); and at the Instituto de Estudios Fiscales (1981-1989).

In 1979 she joined the Spanish Tax Inspectorate, holding various roles within the Ministry of Finance and afterwards in the AEAT (the Spanish Revenue Service). She was Chief Inspector of the Tax delegation to Málaga from 1987-1989, Director of Regional Economic Incentives (1989-1993) an Director of the Department of Financial Inspection of the National Tax Inspectorate.

[edit] Political life

Álvarez was an MP in the Andaluz Parliament for the province of Málaga, and in August 1994 she was named Minister of the Economy and Revenue for the Junta de Andalucía, becoming a member of the second cabinet of Manuel Chaves.

During her time as a minister, neigher of her two budgets was approved by the Parliament.

In 1996, after the regional elections, she was confirmed in her post by Chaves, since when she worked especially on the payment of Andalucía's public debt and autonomous finance.

In the following elections, in March 2000, Chaves kept her as head of the Ministry of Economy and Revenue for the sixth Andaluz Parliament.

In the Spanish general elections of 2004, she was number one on the Socialist list for the Chamber of Deputies for the Province of Mâlaga, while supporting José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero for his candidature for the Presidency of the Government.

Just before these elections, in January, Álvarez - married and mother of one daughter - was elected president of the Socialist Political Conference committee. After this election, she was named as Minister of Public Works.

She was re-elected in 2008 as MP for the Province of Málaga.