| The Spanish governmental system is a Constitutional Monarchy with Juan Carlos I as the current king. The king is both Spain's Head of State and its Commander in Chief of Armed Forces, as well the highest representative of the Spain in international matters. The elected Prime Minister - along with his hand-picked Council of Ministers - heads up the executive branch. Executive power in Spain lies with the Council of Ministers (Spanish Consejo de Ministros). It is headed by the President of the Government (Prime Minister) who is nominated by the King, confirmed by a vote of the lower house of parliament and then appointed by the king. The economy of Spain is the twelfth-largest economy in the world and the fifth-largest in Europe. Until 2008 the economy of Spain had been regarded as one of the most dynamic within the European Union (EU), attracting significant amounts of foreign investment. Spain's economy had been credited with having avoided the virtual zero growth rates of some of its largest partners in the EU. In fact, the country's economy had created more than half of all the new jobs in the European Union over the five years ending 2005. In 2011 this process was rapidly being reversed with negative growth and an unemployment rate of 23%, the highest in Europe and representing more than a quarter of the total euro zone unemployment figure |