The Alicante-based Ministry of Innovation and Universities remains a volatile hub. Movements across different roles have been constant since the assembly began. Yet, there is no shortage of stability in the sense that relief comes without much public drama. Four more reshuffles have occurred since September, and the latest involves Carmen Beviá stepping down from her post as regional secretary for Universities. While most changes in the organizational chart stem from personal decisions, there is also a sense that some moves are being guided from the inside. The ministry has been led by Josefina Bueno since mid-May. Circles close to the minister note the lingering effects of Carolina Pascual’s departure, while others point to Josefina Bueno’s chief of staff as the real power broker. Mari Angeles Rocheland has been entangled in friction with several senior figures at Innovation.
resignation
The most recent exit occurred last Friday when Carmen Beviá submitted her resignation after intermittent clashes within the ministry’s leadership and ongoing disagreements over university funding. A replacement has not yet been named, but ministry sources say efforts are underway to identify a successor promptly. These same sources suggest that the Generalitat’s president, Ximo Puig, is actively involved in coordinating the reshuffle with the minister.
Looking back in time, Gonzalo García Mayans assumed new responsibilities at the Alicante Port Authority at the end of last October after stepping down as the minister’s parliamentary adviser. That period also marked the emergence of Carolina Pascual as chief of staff, a role she had held since September of the previous year when she led the ministry. She subsequently served as parliamentary adviser until her dismissal, a transition that coincided with Rochel’s appointment as chief of staff. Earlier, this position had been part of the Ministry of Finance.
Another resignation occurred at the end of September when Ángel Carbonell stepped down as Managing Director of Science and Research. Carbonell, a professor at Elche’s Miguel Hernández University, accepted the post in July 2020 to fill a vacancy that had lasted six months. His predecessor was Beviá, who later became regional secretary for Universities and Research before resigning from that responsibility last Friday.
Follow the dance of positions in innovation now in the general direction of Science
The fourth sudden change in the ministry was the appointment of Jordi Juan as regional secretary for Innovation and Digital Transformation. After Juan’s resignation, the role passed to Marian Campello, a former district deputy for Compromís. In the previous legislature, Campello served as a presidential adviser in the autonomous Parliament until taking on the new responsibility after being excluded from the Cortes in the last election.
The ministry’s leadership did not stand still. Last May, Bueno replaced Pascual after accepting President Puig’s challenge. In the last legislature, Alicante already held the post of managing director for University, Research and Science. Pascual, meanwhile, moved ahead in Botànic’s second term, a period that began when the Consell president formalized his commitment to strengthen decentralized governance and give more weight to regional institutions.
relay
Apart from the ongoing upheaval, rapid relocations have dragged on for months. For instance, in September 2020, Pepe Villar was dismissed by Verónica López as Undersecretary for Innovation. Villar resigned after publicly criticizing the minister at that time, underscoring how the new department’s establishment faced early obstacles.
Another change arrived in May of the following year when Pedro Pernías, then managing director of the Digital Society Initiative, became regional director of Innovation in Valencia. Pernías was later replaced by Juan Ignacio Torregrosa, who had previously served as director of the Universitat Politècnica de València’s Alcoy campus. These moves culminated in a near-complete reshaping of the department.