Pilar del Castillo Vera (pronounced [piˈlaɾ ðel kasˈtiʎo]; born 31 July 1952) is a Spanish politician who has been serving as a Member of the European Parliament since 2004.

Awarded the Spanish Sociological Research Centre Prize for the doctoral thesis 'Political Party Funding in Western Democracies', 1984.

[citation needed] When Prime Minister José Maria Aznar led his conservative Popular Party to a victory and second term of office at the 2000 national elections, he made Del Castillo his new Minister of Education, Culture and Sport.

[1] In this capacity, she was in charge of implementing the government's 2001 plan to overhaul the country's public universities; the law prompted the largest student demonstrations since Spain's transition to democracy, with an estimated 100,000 students, university staff protesting nationwide on 1 December 2001.

[5] In her capacity as member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, Del Castillo is the parliament's rapporteur on the European Union’s Data Act.