"I'll do everything possible to enforce the smoking ban"

Three weeks after she took over the Health Ministry post in a Cabinet reshuffle, Socialist Party number three Leire Pajín says that one of her main priorities is making sure that the government's draft bill to ban smoking in all public places - extending the current limits to all bars and restaurants - is implemented on January 2.

The 34-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric career, progressing from being the country's youngest-ever member of Congress to party secretary, and now head of the Health, Social Policy, and Equality Ministry. Her promotion was greeted with derision by Francisco Javier León de la Riva, the Popular Party mayor of Valladolid, who made several sexist comments about Pajín.

"I don't agree with users of the health system paying for their treatment"

"Drugs produce serious medical problems; I am not for legalization"

Question. Should De la Riva be forced to resign?

Answer. I think that public figures have a particular responsibility to set an example in a country that still has a long way to go in terms of equal opportunities. These kinds of comments need to be seen for what they are: the thin end of the wedge. I know that there are many women in the Popular Party who want to see a tougher line regarding this kind of behavior. Sexism is a cross-party issue, as is equal opportunities.

Q. Do you think you have enough experience and knowledge to run the Health Ministry?

A. My background in politics and my education - I studied sociology - equip me to deal with the job. Social policy is nothing new to Leire Pajín. Ministers are not chosen for their academic training; they are chosen for their ability to make political and public policy decisions. There is no shortage of experts in the Ministry to call on.

Q. What will happen if the Constitutional Court backs the PP appeal against the new abortion legislation?

A. I am confident that we will get a positive ruling. What concerns me is the existence of a political party that seems committed to blocking every attempt to improve women's lives. This is what we have to explain to the voters: which is the party that wants to implement progressive legislation, and which wants to block it. The abortion law is constitutional.

Q. What are you going to do to reduce the health budget's deficit?

A. I don't agree with measures to make users of the health system pay a contribution to their treatment. This will only discourage the poorest from seeing a doctor. Before we go down that road we need to exhaust all the other possibilities to save money and improve efficiency.

Q. Where do you stand on legalizing drugs?

A. This is not something that one country can do alone; this would simply distort the situation further. From a public health perspective, it is scientifically proven that consuming certain substances produces serious medical problems. So I am not in favor of legalizing drugs.

Q. You have said that families waiting for money from the state to help them look after aged or infirm dependents will be paid. Yet there are still 240,000 people, many of them in desperate need of help still waiting for financial support.

A. Since the law entitling families with dependents to financial aid was passed three and a half years ago we have helped 635,000 people. This is a major contribution to the welfare state. The first thing we had to do was establish the legal right to assistance. Then we created the system, the services, and guaranteed the funding.

Q. Legislation further extending the country's anti-smoking ban is about to be introduced. Aside from not being allowed to smoke in bars and restaurants, parents taking their children to play parks will not be allowed to smoke for fear of setting a bad example. Isn't this a case of the state interfering in people's private lives?

A. It is a preventative measure.

Q. And what will you do if, as happened last time, the regional government of Madrid refuses to implement the law?

A. This is a law reached through consensus. But if there are problems, then I will do everything within the law to enforce the smoking ban.

Q. Such as?

A. I don't want to speculate about something that hasn't happened. I believe that the law will be implemented without fuss.

Q. The regional governments are not implementing your government's legislation regarding funding for families with dependents. Will we see you doing everything within the law to make sure that they do?

A. Until we have carried out a full evaluation of the situation regarding funding for families with dependents, we cannot impose any measures against regional governments who are refusing to participate in the scheme.

Q. Do you smoke?

A. I stopped smoking as a result of the first ban in 2004.