The Catalunya Europa Foundation and RBA presents "Maragall i el govern de la Generalitat: les polítiques del canvi", a book that covers the policies of Pasqual Maragall during his time as president of the Catalan government.

Almost 20 years after the Tinell Pact, which gave way to the first left-wing government after a long period of government by Jordi Pujol, the FCE and RBA have published the book "Maragall i el govern de la Generalitat: les polítiques del canvi", edited by Josep Maria Muñoz and written by Gemma Ubasart, Carles Rivera, Júlia Miralles de Imperial and Joan Vicente. The book consists of 4 parts devoted, respectively, to politics, economics, social rights and territorial policies.

RBA hosted the presentation of this work, which comes 4 years after the publication of the book "Pasqual Maragall: pensament i acció", an initiative of the FCE also published by RBA. The presentation was given by political scientists Toni Rodon and Oriol Bartomeus and historian Paola Lo Cascio in an event, presented and moderated by Gemma Nierga, which brought together many current politicians and the Maragall government.

All three academics agreed that the book had caused them "nostalgia." Bartomeus also highlighted 3 threads that transpire throughout the book. First, the "sometimes unwise ambition" of the policies they wanted to pursue, which "disprove the caricature of a government that improvises." The second element that runs through the whole book, according to this political scientist, is the change not only in politics, but also in the way the country is done and understood. And last but not least, the headline made you feel like you're in for a treat.

Lo Cascio also highlighted the number of policies carried out over a short period of time and the "prestige that was intended to be given to Catalan institutions". For this historian, also trained in the world of political science, this is a period in which the skills were used to try to solve problems of the citizenry. Those in charge "believed that institutions had an impact on people's lives."

The political scientist, Toni Rodon, also emphasized that the Maragall period is the last great clash between the two great actors of Catalan politics up to that moment, after multiple scenarios of electoral confrontation. For Rodon, “although the Maragall government did not last long, it had had a long preparatory period. And as Gemma Ubasart says in the book, she adds, "more has been achieved than what has been said and less than what its protagonists wanted."

Find more information about the book here