Image copyright Reuters Image caption Women outnumber men in Mr Sánchez's team by almost two to one

Spain's King Felipe VI has sworn in a new Socialist government with a record number of 11 women in 17 cabinet posts.

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said his new team "shared the same vision of a progressive society that was both modernising and pro-European".

The cabinet is in marked contrast to the male-dominated executives of centre-right ex-PM Mariano Rajoy, who was ousted last week.

As a minority government, it will rely on other parties to enact legislation.

Including the prime minister, the 18-strong government is 61.1% female - the highest proportion in the country's history. Only a handful of countries currently have governments where at least 50% of ministers are women. They include France, Sweden and Canada.

Women have been given some of the biggest jobs in the new Spanish cabinet, including the defence, economy, finance and education portfolios.

Separately, an ex-astronaut has been given the role of science minister.

Mr Sánchez, 46, whose party commands just 84 seats in the 350-seat parliament, came to power when Mr Rajoy lost his job in the wake of a massive corruption scandal.

The new prime minister, who says he is a feminist, said his government marked a watershed moment in Spanish society.

Who's who in the Sánchez government?

His mix of party colleagues and experienced figures from outside politics is being described in Spain as a "feminist cabinet".

Image copyright EPA Image caption Three of the key figures in the new government are Economy Minister Nadia Calviño (L), Deputy PM Carmen Calvo and Finance Minister María Jesús Montero

In a televised statement on Wednesday evening he spoke of Europe as "our new homeland" and said he saw his cabinet as a faithful reflection of a change in Spain that had emerged on 8 March through a feminist movement. An estimated five million women across the country staged a "feminist strike" on that day against wage inequality and gender violence.

One of the biggest jobs has gone to Carmen Calvo, a Socialist who will become deputy prime minister and take charge of a reinstated equality ministry. Some of the other new ministers are:

María Jesús Montero , a former Andalusia budget minister, will be finance minister

, a former Andalusia budget minister, will be Nadia Calviño , the chief of budget at the EU Commission, will be economy minister

, the chief of budget at the EU Commission, will be Dolores Delgado , a prosecutor specialising in anti-terrorism, will be justice minister

, a prosecutor specialising in anti-terrorism, will be Margarita Robles , a close aide to the prime minister, gets the defence ministry

, a close aide to the prime minister, gets the Isabel Celáa , a Socialist with long-standing experience in education becomes education minister

, a Socialist with long-standing experience in education becomes Josep Borrell , the former European Parliament president, will be foreign minister

, the former European Parliament president, will be Fernando Grande Marlaska , an openly gay magistrate and former high-court judge who took on cases against Basque separatist group Eta, becomes interior minister

, an openly gay magistrate and former high-court judge who took on cases against Basque separatist group Eta, becomes Màxim Huerta, a journalist and award-winning novelist whose last book was published two months ago, becomes culture and sports minister

In a tweet, the new culture minister paid tribute to his "teacher", the late writer Ana María Matute, with the words: "Culture makes us more free and more happy."

As the ministers were sworn in by the king on Thursday, they took their oaths on the constitution rather than on the bible or crucifix, following the example of Mr Sánchez, who became the first prime minister to forego religious symbols during his swearing-in on Saturday.

New PM looks beyond party for talent

By James Badcock, Madrid

Pedro Sánchez promised his government would be "Socialist and have gender parity". In fact, the government is not entirely Socialist because of its strong technocratic core, and women are commanding a majority.

Given that Mr Sánchez has promised to call elections in less than two years and that he has inherited the outgoing government's budget for 2018, he is looking for a formula that will give him victory at the polls. He may have only 84 seats and will struggle to pass reforms, but he hopes to at least dangle enticing plans before Spanish voters.

He has made a point of sourcing talent from outside his party as well as within. The women in his cabinet include a climate change treaty negotiator, a top Eurocrat and Spain's top anti-terror prosecutor.

Who's the astronaut?

One of the other stand-out names was ex-astronaut Pedro Duque, 55, who last went to space in 2003 as part of an International Space Station (ISS) mission.

An aeronautical engineer with three children, he was selected by the European Space Agency's astronaut corps in 1992 and travelled to space for the first time in 1998, when he joined Nasa's STS-95 mission from Cape Canaveral. Mr Duque served as a mission specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Discovery on the nine-day mission.

In 2003, he took part in the 10-day Cervantes ISS mission as a flight engineer on the Russian Soyuz-TMA.

Image copyright ESA-S. Corvaja 2003 Image caption Pedro Duque took part in a 2003 mission to the ISS

Conservative Popular Party leader Mariano Rajoy, who took office in 2011, lost his job as prime minister last week after losing a no-confidence motion in parliament.

On Wednesday, Mr Rajoy, 63, said he planned to leave the political scene, saying "there are other things to do in life than dedicate oneself to politics".

He added: "I had an enormously intense political life and I think it makes no sense to stay longer here."</s>Spain just set a standard that the world should follow. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has picked 11 women and six men to join his new administration, making Spain's new cabinet is the most women-dominated in the country's history. His government isn't just setting national records, though; Spain's cabinet now includes a greater proportion of women than any other in the world.

The 17 new cabinet members were sworn in by King Felipe VI on Thursday. Sánchez, a pro-European Union member of the country's Socialist party, became Spain's seventh prime minister earlier this week when he replaced Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who was ousted by parliament on June 1. Rajoy's 13-member cabinet included just five women, making it 38 percent female. Sánchez's, then, marks a 23 percent increase.

Spain has never had such a women-heavy cabinet before — but, of course, male-dominated administrations have been the norm across the world, not the exception. U.N. data from January 2017 that broke down government ministerial positions (i.e. cabinet jobs) along gender lines showed that no country employed more than 52.9 percent women in these roles. If that analysis still holds true, Spain now has a greater percentage of female cabinet members than any other nation.

The U.N. data indicated that only six countries had cabinets that included 50 percent women or higher. Six nations appointed between 40 and 49.9 percent women in ministerial positions; nine (including Spain at the time) had between 35 and 39.9 percent women; and 10 had between 30 and 34.9 percent. The plurality of countries were at the next level down, employing between 25 and 29.9 percent women — and the rest were even lower. Thirteen countries employed no women in cabinet positions.

The analysis notes that not every country had not completed its ministerial appointments at the time. The U.N. didn't even include the United States on the list, likely because that January marked a transition period between the administrations of President Obama and President Trump. Seven out of 22 members of Obama's first cabinet were women (31.8 percent), while Trump started off with four women in his 24-person cabinet (16.6 percent).

Obama had more female cabinet members than any other past U.S. president, according to an analysis from the Center for American Women and Politics. He appointed 10 in total over his presidency. That means that Spain has now eclipsed the U.S. record, both in numbers and percentages.

The U.N. reports that women tend to take on ministerial positions within the environmental and social sectors. But the newly sworn-in female ministers in Spain's cabinet oversee a wide range of domains: finance; justice; equality; defense; energy and climate change; health, social welfare, and consumer affairs; labor; education; industry; territorial administration; and economic affairs.

In addition to being the minister of equality, Carmen Calvo was also made Spain's deputy prime minister on Thursday. While the majority of Spain's deputy prime ministers have been male, the last two were women.

Another country that's recently made headlines for employing record numbers of female cabinet members is Canada (though, in comparison to Spain, it now has a ways to go). Half of all of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's appointments to his administration in 2015 were women, and when asked why, he replied, "Because it's 2015."

One of Trudeau's appointees, Minister of Democratic Institutions Maryam Monsef, made an apt statement at the time about why it's so important to have equal representation of women in ministerial positions. "The more diverse your organization, your board, or, in this case, cabinet, the more it reflects the realities of the population we are serving," she told Huffington Post Canada. "That can only be a good thing."

That rings true with Spain's historic cabinet as well.</s>Pablo Blazquez Dominguez/Getty Images(MADRID) — The King of Spain, Felipe VI, swore in the new government of the 46-year-old prime minister, Pedro Sanchez — including a majority of women.

The government of the self-proclaimed feminist new prime minister has an unprecedented distinction: 11 women in a cabinet of 17, including the most powerful ministers, such as education, economy, finance and defense.

On March 8, millions of Spanish women joined a strike asking for gender equality and denouncing sexual discrimination and harassment.

“This new government is unequivocally committed to equality. You have heard me saying that many times: Spain changed on March 8. There was a before and an after in our country with this feminist mobilization and the new government wants to reflect it,” Sanchez said on Wednesday.

It definitely marks a contrast with the government of former Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who got a vote of defiance after his conservative party, People’s Party (Partido Popular), was embroiled in a corruption scandal. Under Rajoy’s government, only five women served the country.

Nevertheless, the leader of the Spanish Worker’s Party is already facing a challenge after taking office, as he only got 84 seats out of 350-seat Parliament. That means it will be difficult for his government to reform the country.

Mister Sanchez already promised to organize elections within two years.

Among these women, Carmen Calvo is becoming equality minister and Maria Jesus Montero will serve as a finance minister.

After a terrorist attack in Barcelona in 2017, Mister Sanchez decided to choose Dolores Delgado, a former anti-terror prosecutor, as minister of justice.

Meanwhile, Meritxell Batet is in charge of the administration of territory, including the conflicted region of Catalunya, which just regained administrative control after a new government took power last week.

Still, Mister Sanchez is opposed to a new independence referendum; instead, he said he is in favor of Catalonia and Basque Country to be considered as nations of Spain and not only regions.

Mister Sanchez described his government in a press conference on Wednesday as a feminist, progressive and pro-European.</s>King Felipe VI on Thursday swore in Spain’s new pro-EU government with a record 11 women members including in key posts such as defence and economy, and six male ministers.

With just 84 seats in Spain’s 350-seat parliament, Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s administration also has the smallest representation of any government since the country returned to democracy and it is not expected to last until the end of its mandate in 2020.

The new executive composed by the 46-year-old, who ousted conservative veteran Mariano Rajoy as prime minister last Friday in a no-confidence vote, includes astronaut Pedro Duque as science minister.

When Sanchez presented his cabinet on Wednesday evening he said it was “a reflection of the best in society” — a society he described as composed of women and men, old and young, rooted in the European Union.

But as a minority government it will have a tough time governing Spain, relying as it will on the votes of far-left party Podemos as well as Basque and Catalan nationalist lawmakers who supported his no-confidence motion.

Each new minister vowed to “faithfully fulfil the duties of minister… with loyalty to the king” at a ceremony at the Zarzuela palace near Madrid.

Calvo, who was culture minister from 2004 to 2007, will also be in charge of equality, a priority for Sanchez’s government in a country where women staged an unprecedented strike to defend their rights on March 8.

Anti-terror prosecutor Dolores Delgado became justice minister, former Supreme Court judge Margarita Robles defence minister, and other women have been put in charge of education, employment or health.

Fernando Grande-Marlaska, an openly gay former judge at Spain’s top-level National Court, where he took on cases against Basque separatist group ETA, heads up the interior ministry.

Women also lead the economic team of Sanchez’s government, whose “main priority” will be to respect Madrid’s deficit reduction commitments to the EU, the new prime minister has said.

Spain has promised to reduce its deficit to 2.2 percent of GDP in 2018, thus finally going under the three percent limit set by Brussels.

Calvino, the new economy minister, has 12 years of experience in high-level postings in Brussels.

Maria Jesus Montero, meanwhile, became budget minister after playing a similar role at a regional level in southern Andalusia.

In the name of maintaining “stability,” Sanchez has also promised to implement the 2018 budget crafted by the previous conservative government.

Among the budget’s key measures are a one to three percent rise in the lowest pensions and a salary increase for civil servants, ahead of municipal, regional and European elections next year.

Sanchez’s new team also includes a minister in charge of science, innovation and universities.

And the man to take that role is Spain’s first astronaut Pedro Duque.

As Brexit gathers pace, and with Italy now led by a eurosceptic, populist government, Spain’s new executive is distinctly pro-EU.

Apart from Calvino’s appointment as economy minister — a move welcome by the EU Commission — Borrell was European parliament president between 2004 and 2007.

A Catalan who is fiercely against the independence movement in his home region, Borrell will be tasked with defending his government’s commitment to Spanish unity abroad.

He has said the previous conservative government was “very bad” when it came to public relations abroad on the Catalan separatist issue.

On a day-to-day basis, Meritxell Batet, another Catalan, has been put in charge of relations with Spain’s regions.

As such, she will have the prickly task of trying to ease the situation in her own deeply divided home region.</s>King Felipe VI on Thursday swore in Spain's new pro-EU government with a record 11 women members including in key posts such as defense and economy, and six male ministers.

With just 84 seats in Spain's 350-seat parliament, Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's administration also has the smallest representation of any government since the country returned to democracy and it is not expected to last until the end of its mandate in 2020.</s>Spain has inaugurated the most female-dominated cabinet in the world, as 11 women and six men took their positions in Pedro Sánchez's new centre-Left government.

Spain has inaugurated the most female-dominated cabinet in the world, as 11 women and six men took their positions in Pedro Sánchez's new centre-Left government.

Mr Sánchez, who took power last week following a dramatic vote of no confidence in the government of Mariano Rajoy, was widely applauded for advancing equality with the appointments, which put female ministers in key portfolios such as the treasury and defence.

At almost 65pc female, the Spanish cabinet now leads the world in the proportion of women ministers. Mr Sánchez acknowledged the political influence of the unprecedented strike on International Women's Day on March 8, when millions of Spanish women abandoned their workplaces and homes for the streets, describing it as a watershed moment for social progress.

After unveiling his cabinet, he said it was a government "committed to equality" that for the first time gave the weight of economic responsibility to women. Thirteen ministers referred to the cabinet as the "Consejo de Ministras y Ministros" - putting the feminine form of the noun first instead of the traditional use of the masculine form for both genders.

"We greet the most feminist government in the world," said the Madrid-based organisation, the Communication and Gender Agency. "If you doubt their credentials, check their CVs. And now let them work."

Among the appointees are María Jesús Montero, the new head of the treasury, Margarita Robles at the defence ministry, Dolores Delgado as minister of justice and Carmen Calvo, who, as well as her roles as vice-president of the government and minister for equality will also oversee parliamentary relations. Brussels has been particularly pleased with the selection of Nadia Calviño, the European Commission's director general for budgets, to head the ministry of economic affairs.

She is regarded as one of several appointments designed to reassure Europe over the new administration, which won power in a lightening assault on the Rajoy government but must rule with the smallest minority since Spain's transition to democracy in 1978.

The choice of Josep Borrell, a former president of the European Parliament who in recent years has taken a hardline stance against the Catalan independence movement, has also been lauded in Brussels.</s>Women represented 64.7 percent of the new Cabinet, above the 62.5 percent that the Finnish government scored in 2015 according to the statistics of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Most of the new ministers referred to the female majority in their oath-taking on Thursday before King Felipe VI.

A court ruling over a kickbacks-for-contracts scheme involving the conservative Popular Party prompted a no confidence vote against Mariano Rajoy, prime minister since 2011.

Sanchez replaced Rajoy last week. He has defined his government as feminist, progressive, pro-European and “a loyal reflection of the best in the society that it aspires to serve.”

Spanish minister for economic affairs Nadia Calvino takes oath of office in presence of Spain’s King Felipe VI at La Zarzuela palace in Madrid on June 7, 2018.J. J. Guillen / AFP – Getty Images

Carmen Calvo, an expert in constitutional law and former culture minister, will be Sanchez’s deputy prime minister and also in charge of the resurrected Ministry of Equality.

The government “has to work to reduce inequalities and achieve great equality, which affects men and women,” Calvo said on Friday in a brief ceremony to take over the government’s no. 2 position from Soraya Saenz de Santamaria.</s>Spain's new female-dominated government cabinet was sworn in on Thursday, putting the cap on one of the fastest power transitions in the country's four decades of democratic rule.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's new Socialist government has the most female ministers in Spanish and European history.

It is comprised of 11 female ministers - overseeing key areas such as the national economy, finance and defense - and six men.

He has defined his government as feminist, progressive, pro-European and 'a loyal reflection of the best in the society that it aspires to serve.'

Women represented 64.7 percent of the new Cabinet, above the 62.5 percent that the Finnish government scored in 2015 according to the statistics of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Most of the new ministers referred to the female majority in their oath-taking on Thursday before King Felipe VI.

Sanchez, 46, a former economics professor who leads the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, replaced Rajoy last week.

A court ruling over a kickbacks-for-contracts scheme involving the conservative Popular Party prompted a no confidence vote against Mariano Rajoy, prime minister since 2011.

Sanchez, 46, a former economics professor who leads the Spanish Socialist Workers' Party, replaced Rajoy last week.

Only five women served in the last Cabinet under Rajoy.

But with just 84 seats in Spain's 350-seat parliament, Sanchez's administration also has the smallest representation of any government since the country returned to democracy and it is not expected to last until the end of its mandate in 2020.

Carmen Calvo, an expert in constitutional law and former culture minister, will be Sanchez's deputy prime minister and also in charge of the resurrected Ministry of Equality.

The government 'has to work to reduce inequalities and achieve great equality, which affects men and women,' Calvo said on Friday in a brief ceremony to take over the government's no. 2 position from Soraya Saenz de Santamaria.

Nadia Calvino, who has been director general for the budget at the European Union's Commission since 2014, was appointed as the minister in charge of the eurozone's fourth largest economy.

Margarita Robles was named defense minister, and Maria Jesus Montero will be finance minister.

The posts of justice minister, health minister and education minister also went to women.

The push for Catalan independence, which haunted Rajoy during the last eight months of the outgoing government, will be one of the key challenges of the new administration.

Meritxell Batet, a Catalan lawmaker and legal expert on the country's constitution, will be charged with dealing with Catalonia's desire for further autonomy as the new minister of public administration.

The previously announced appointment of Josep Borrell, the former European Parliament president and a pro-Spanish unity Catalan politician, as foreign minister, irked some separatists.

Sanchez has promised to open talks with a new regional cabinet in the prosperous northeastern region.

But he has said that any solution must fit within Spain's Constitution, which calls the nation 'indivisible' and says national sovereignty resides in the Madrid-based parliament.</s>Spain's new Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has filled 11 of his 17 cabinet posts with women, the highest proportion in all of Europe.

Women were given the top jobs in Sanchez's cabinet, including defense, economy and finance.

King Felipe VI on Thursday swore in the new pro-EU government.

The socialist leader's choice was a sharp contrast to his predecessor ex-PM Mariano Rajoy, who stocked his cabinet with male executives.

Sanchez chose his cabinet from a variety of occupational backgrounds, including appointing a former astronaut as science minister.

Some have described Sanchez's choice as a "feminist cabinet."

With 61.6 percent of the government led by women, Sanchez has made national history and topped Europe's government proportions. France and Sweden are the only other European states to have at least 50 percent of ministerial positions filled by women.

The prime minister has said his new government consists of people who "shared the same vision of a progressive society that was both modernizing and pro-European."

Sanchez said his executive was "a reflection of the best in society" -- a society he described as composed of women and men, old and young, rooted in the European Union.

But it is also a minority government, as the Socialists only have 84 lawmakers in the 350-seat parliament.

As such, the government will have a tough time governing Spain, relying as it will on the votes of far-left party Podemos as well as Basque and Catalan nationalist lawmakers who supported his no-confidence motion.

The new government is due to take an oath before King Felipe VI on Thursday.

The new executive includes two veteran Socialists -- Carmen Calvo, vice-president, and Josep Borrell as foreign minister.

Calvo, who was culture minister from 2004 to 2007, will also be in charge of equality, a priority for Sanchez's government in a country where women staged an unprecedented strike to defend their rights on March 8.

Anti-terror prosecutor Dolores Delgado will be justice minister and former Supreme Court judge Margarita Robles defense minister.

Fernando Grande-Marlaska, a former judge at Spain's top-level National Court, where he took on cases against Basque separatist group ETA, will head up the interior ministry.

Women will also lead the economic team of Sanchez's government, whose "main priority" will be to respect Madrid's deficit reduction commitments to the EU, the new prime minister has said.

Spain has promised to reduce its deficit to 2.2 percent of GDP in 2018, thus finally going under the 3 percent limit set by Brussels.

The new economy minister will be Nadia Calvino, who is director general for budget at the European Commission and has a 12-year experience in high-level postings in Brussels.

Maria Jesus Montero, meanwhile, will become budget minister after playing a similar role at a regional level in southern Andalusia.

In the name of maintaining "stability," Sanchez has also promised to implement the 2018 budget crafted by the previous conservative government.

Among the budget's key measures are a one to 3 percent rise in the lowest pensions and a salary increase for civil servants, ahead of municipal, regional and European elections next year.

Sanchez's new team, which the Socialist leader presented to King Felipe VI earlier Wednesday, also includes a minister in charge of science, innovation and universities.

And the man to take that role is Spain's first astronaut Pedro Duque.

As Brexit gathers pace, and with Italy now led by a eurosceptic, populist government, Spain's new executive is distinctly pro-EU.

Apart from Calvino's appointment as economy minister -- a move welcome by the EU Commission -- Borrell was European parliament president between 2004 and 2007.

A Catalan who is fiercely against the independence movement in his home region, he will be tasked with defending his government's commitment to Spanish unity abroad.

Borrell has said the previous conservative government was "very bad" when it came to public relations abroad on the Catalan separatist issue.

On a day-to-day basis, Meritxell Batet, another Catalan, has been put in charge of relations with Spain's regions.

As such, she will have the prickly task of trying to ease the situation in her own deeply divided home region.

Finally, Maxim Huerta, an award-winning author, will become culture minister.</s>Sanchez, 46, ousted conservative veteran Mariano Rajoy as prime minister last week in a no-confidence vote

Felipe VI on Thursday swore in Spain's new pro-EU government, with women holding the majority of ministerial posts. Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez named 11 women to top posts including defence and economy in a cabinet with six male ministers.

That makes it the European government with the most women after Sweden's, which has 12 female cabinet ministers and 11 men. Sanchez's administration risks not lasting until the end of the current mandate in 2020, however, given the fragmented state of Spain's political parties. Sanchez, 46, ousted conservative veteran Mariano Rajoy as prime minister last week in a no-confidence vote.

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Spanish King Felipe VI swears in the cabinet of Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. It is the first cabinet in European history, and the only in the world, to be composed primarily of women.