Born in Girona in 1948.

He is Professor of Contemporary History and Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Perpignan.

He has been a lecturer at the Universities of Liverpool (1970-1972), Autonomous University of Barcelona (1972-1992) and Girona (1992-2018) and Director of the Catalan Institute for Research on Cultural Heritage from 2013 to 2022.

He was Minister of Town and Country Planning and Public Works from 2003 to 2010. He was also Minister of the Presidency in 2006 and Spokesperson for the Government from 2003 to 2006. Previously, he was mayor of Girona from 1979 to 2002 and president of the Federation of Municipalities of Catalonia (FMC) from 1981 to 1995.

He has also been a deputy of the socialist party, where he was chairman of the parliamentary group and spokesperson at different stages. He left the membership of the PSC in 2015, after a long career in the party.