With a PhD in Economics from the University of Barcelona, he is Professor of Public Finance at the University of Barcelona. Author of numerous articles and books related to the topics of fiscal federalism, regional economy and welfare state. He has been director of the Department of Political Economy, Public Finance and Finance and Tax Law of said university, visiting professor at Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore), founder and Co-director of the Postgraduate course (now Master) in Regional and Local Finance and co-founder and first Director of the IEB (Institut d'Economia of Barcelona), a leading research centre in fiscal federalism and regional economics. After working as an economist in the International Division of Banca Catalana, the Research Service of Banca Catalana and the Metropolitan Corporation of Barcelona, he has been a trustee of the Public Audit Office for Catalonia, a member of the State-Catalan government Joint Evaluations Commission, Spanish member of the European Court of Auditors, a member of the Parliament of Catalonia, and Minister of Economy and Finance of the Regional Government (Generalitat) of Catalonia (2003-2010). He is Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Catalonia-Europe Foundation, a member of the Advisory Council of FUNCAS and member of the Board of Trustees of the Arxiu Tarradellas Foundation.
