To his supporters he’s calm, considered, strategic and resilient. But to his critics – whose ranks have swelled this year – Spain’s prime minister is hesitant, rigid, poorly advised and uncharismatic. Whatever your view, few will argue that even his previous experience as a government minister and eight years in opposition can have prepared Mariano Rajoy adequately for the torrid 12 months he has just had. Having made few electoral promises other than to fix the economy, his fortunes were always going to mirror those of the country’s credit risk premium and its jobless queue. Both hit dangerously high levels in 2012, belying Rajoy’s apparent belief on taking office that a change of … [Read more...] about Mariano Rajoy
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Rajoy’s labyrinth
When looking back on the first five months of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy’s government, it’s hard to recall many striking images of the man. That’s probably because he is so studiously media-shy, giving as few press conferences as he possibly can, and leaving most major policy announcements to his number two, Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría. But while Rajoy has been typically low-key during his opening spell in office, events have not and a couple of moments from those rollercoaster first months do stick in the mind, telling us apparently contradictory things about the man. One is his comment to his Finnish counterpart, Jyrki Katainen, back in January, that the labour reform he was … [Read more...] about Rajoy’s labyrinth
Rajoy’s smoke and mirrors have worked – for now, at least
If we have learnt anything about Spain’s new prime minister, Mariano Rajoy, since he took power in December, it’s that his reputation for being anything but straightforward when conveying his intentions is well deserved. Rajoy has often been portrayed as the embodiment of retranca, a tendency his fellow Galicians are known for to answer questions with ambiguity and multiple meanings. The first two months of his tenure have seen Rajoy behave every bit like the stereotypical Galician. An early example of this was when the prime minister deployed his front-line ministers to announce a major tax increase, just days after himself announcing that “my intention is not to raise taxes.” And now … [Read more...] about Rajoy’s smoke and mirrors have worked – for now, at least