Cristóbal Montoro

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Montoro and the second or maternal family name is Romero.
The Most Excellent
Cristóbal Montoro
Minister of Finance of Spain[a]
In office
22 December 2011 – 1 June 2018
MonarchsJuan Carlos I (2011–2014)
Felipe VI (2014–2018)
Prime MinisterMariano Rajoy
Preceded byElena Salgado (Finance)
Manuel Chaves (Public Administration)
Succeeded byMaría Jesús Montero (Finance)
Meritxell Batet (Civil Service)
In office
28 April 2000 – 17 April 2004
MonarchJuan Carlos I
Prime MinisterJosé María Aznar
Preceded byRodrigo Rato
Succeeded byPedro Solbes
Secretary of State for Economy of Spain
In office
20 July 1996 – 31 March 2000
MonarchJuan Carlos I
Prime MinisterJosé María Aznar
Preceded byManuel Conthe
Succeeded byJosé Folgado
Member of the Congress of Deputies
In office
13 January 2016 – 21 May 2019
ConstituencyMadrid
In office
1 April 2008 – 13 December 2011
ConstituencyMadrid
In office
28 March 2000 – 2 July 2004
ConstituencyJaen
In office
21 June 1993 – 28 May 1996
ConstituencyMadrid
Member of the European Parliament
In office
20 July 2004 – 1 April 2008
ConstituencySpain
Personal details
Born (1950-07-28) 28 July 1950
Cambil, Spain
Political partyPeople's Party (until 2025)
EducationAutonomous University of Madrid (Economics, until 1973; Doctorate until 1981)

Cristóbal Ricardo Montoro Romero (born 28 July 1950 in Cambil) is a Spanish economist and former People's Party politician. He served as Minister of Finance from 2000 until 2004, as Minister of Finance and Public Administration from 2011 until 2016[1] and as Minister of Finance and the Civil Service from 2016 until 2018, when the Partido Popular government fell in a vote of no confidence.

He represented Madrid in the Congress of Deputies from 1993 until 1996 and again from 2016 until 2019, when he announced that he would not stand in the April 2019 election. He also represented Jaén from 2000 until 2004, and Seville from 2011 until 2016.

His first government position was as Secretary of the State of the Economy in José María Aznar's first government, in which he was a strong supporter of Spain joining the Eurozone. After Aznar's government was reelected in 2000, he became the Finance Minister (a role taken by Rodrigo Rato in the first government of Aznar).

European Parliament

The PP lost the 2004 Spanish general election and Montoro was elected as a Member of the European Parliament for the People's Party. He sat on the European Parliament Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.[2]

He was a substitute for the Committee on Budgets, a member of the Delegation for relations with the countries of the Andean Community and a substitute for the Delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly.

Return to Spanish Congress

He returned to Congress in 2008, serving as the Popular Party spokesperson on the economy until the party returned to power in 2011. In the first government of Mariano Rajoy, Montoro served as the Minister of Finance and Public Administration.

In the second government of Mariano Rajoy, which began in 2016, he occupied a similar position as Minister of Finance and the Civil Service (his ministry was restructured in a cabinet reshuffle).

Retirement

In 2019, Montoro did not stand for re-election to Congress.

In July 2025, Montoro unexpectedly returned to the spotlight when the media reported on allegations that while he was a minister in the People's Party government, a consultancy firm linked to him had received up to €11 million from energy companies. The firm in question was founded in 2006. It is said to have maintained direct access to Montoro after 2008, when he sold his shares in the business and ostensibly severed ties.[3] While the money was filed as consultancy payments, reports suggested that the money could have been used to lobby the Rajoy government.[4] It was further alleged that he had used civil servants in the Spanish Tax Agency and elsewhere as part of a "network of influence".[3]

Montoro resigned from the PP, yet political scientists suggested that the scandal could still hurt his former party, which had criticised the PSOE in relation to the Koldo case, a corruption scandal which was generating headlines in 2025.[5]

Education

Career

  • 1982-1988: Assistant lecturer in public finance (UAM, 1973–1982) and Deputy professor
  • since 1989: Professor of public finance at the University of Cantabria
  • Economist and director of studies[6]
  • 1996-2000: Member of the Boards of Directors of Telefónica, Iberia, Endesa and SEPI
  • since 1999: Member of the National Executive Committee of the PP
  • 1993-1996, 2000-2004, 2008-present: Member of the Congress of Deputies.[6]
  • 1996-2000: Secretary of State for the Economy
  • 1996-2000: Spain's representative to various economic and financial organisations
  • 2000-2004: Minister of the Treasury[6]
  • 2011-2016: Minister of the Treasury and Public Administrations
  • 2016–2018: Minister of the Treasury and Civil Service

Decorations

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Minister of Finance from 2000 to 2004, Minister of Finance and Public Administrations from 2011 to 2016 and Minister of Finance and Civil Service from 2016 to 2018.

References

  1. ^ R., Juan Carlos (22 December 2011). Rajoy Brey, Mariano (ed.). "Real Decreto 1826/2011, de 21 de diciembre, por el que se nombran Ministros del Gobierno" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish) (307). President of the Spanish Government: 139968. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
  2. ^ "Cristobal Montero Romero".
  3. ^ a b Cordero, Dani, López-Fonseca, Óscar (2025-07-16). "Cristóbal Montoro, imputado por crear "una red de influencias" para beneficiar a empresas gasistas cuando era ministro de Hacienda" [Cristóbal Montoro, investigated for creating "a network of influences" to benefit gas firms when he was Finance Minister]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 2025-07-19.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ Thykjær, Christina (2025-07-18). "Montoro cobró 11 millones de las energéticas para influir en leyes" [Montoro received 11 million from energy firms to influence laws]. Euronews (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 July 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ Burgen, Stephen (2025-07-18). "Spain's People's party hit by alleged multimillion cash-for-favours scandal". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-07-19.
  6. ^ a b c d "Cristóbal Montoro Romero". Ministerio de Hacienda (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 1 October 1999. Retrieved 18 May 2019.
  7. ^ "El Gobierno condecora al Ejecutivo saliente con distinciones de la Orden de Isabel la Católica y la de Carlos III". Europa Press (in Spanish). Madrid. 3 August 2018. Retrieved 28 October 2018.
  8. ^ R., Felipe (4 August 2018). Borrell Fontelles, Josep (ed.). "Real Decreto 1043/2018, de 3 de agosto, por el que se concede la Gran Cruz de la Orden de Isabel la Católica a don Cristóbal Ricardo Montoro Romero" (PDF). Boletín Oficial del Estado (in Spanish) (188). Ministro de Asuntos Exteriores, Unión Europea y Cooperación: 78399. Retrieved 6 August 2018.
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