Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced today, Friday, the appointment of Carlos Cuervo, who previously served as the Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance, as the new Minister of Economy and Trade. Sánchez ended weeks of speculation by declaring that Cuervo would replace Nadia Calviño, who is set to assume the presidency of the European Investment Bank. Cuervo (43 years old) is expected to take the oath before King Felipe later today, Friday.
As part of the cabinet reshuffle, Sánchez promoted Budget Minister María Jesús Montero to be the First Deputy Prime Minister, a position previously held by Calviño. Cuervo, a senior civil servant since 2008, played a key role in discussions regarding the new financial rules package for the European Union as a negotiator during Spain's rotating presidency of the bloc. Like Calviño, Cuervo has worked at the European Commission, making him familiar with the inner workings of the complex democratic machinery in Brussels. He holds a PhD in economics from the Complutense University of Madrid and a master's degree in economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
