Peer Steinbrück
| Peer Steinbrück | |
|---|---|
.jpg) |
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| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 22 November 2005 – 28 October 2009 |
|
| Chancellor | Angela Merkel |
| Preceded by | Hans Eichel |
| Succeeded by | Wolfgang Schäuble |
| Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia | |
| In office 6 November 2002 – 24 June 2005 |
|
| Preceded by | Wolfgang Clement |
| Succeeded by | Jürgen Rüttgers |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 10 January 1947 Hamburg, West Germany (now Germany) |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party |
| Alma mater | University of Kiel |
Peer Steinbrück (born 10 January 1947) is a German social democratic politician. He is the SPD candidate for Chancellor of Germany in the 2013 federal election. From 2005 to 2009 he served as German Federal Minister of Finance in the cabinet of Angela Merkel. He was nominated by his party as opposition candidate for Chancellor on 28 September 2012.[1]
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Life and career [edit]
Early life [edit]
Steinbrück was born in Hamburg on 10 January 1947. His mother Ilse was Danish. After having been trained as an officer of the reserve of the Bundeswehr, Steinbrück studied economics in Kiel. He graduated in 1974.
Early career [edit]
After graduation Steinbrück worked for several German ministries and, from 1978 to 1981, in the office of German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt. In the 1980s, Steinbrück was Chief of Staff to the Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, Johannes Rau.
In 1993, he became Minister of Economy and Infrastructure in the State of Schleswig-Holstein. He then returned to North Rhine-Westphalia, where he became Minister of Economy and Infrastructure in 1998 and Finance Minister in 2000.
From 2002 to 2005 Peer Steinbrück served as Minister President (Ministerpräsident or governor) of North Rhine-Westphalia.[2] He headed a coalition government between the SPD and the Green Party.
In the state election on 22 May 2005, Steinbrück's SPD lost to the Christian democratic (CDU) opposition. This loss also had consequences for federal politics: then German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who already was enfeebled by weak opinion polls and criticism within his own party, announced to call for an early federal election for the Bundestag. This ultimately resulted in the 2005 federal election.
Finance Minister [edit]
After the 2005 Bundestag election, SPD and CDU formed a grand coalition under the leadership of new Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU). Peer Steinbrück became finance minister of Germany. Since 2005, he also has been deputy chairman of the SPD. He is generally considered a member of the more conservative wing of the party.
In December 2008, Steinbrück controversially attacked the British Keynesian approach to economic policy in an interview with Newsweek.[3] He raised scepticism about the effectiveness of large fiscal stimulus packages and criticised the resulting increase in public debt.
Steinbrück was also a sharp critic of the Swiss banking secrecy, which in 2009 caused some tensions between Germany and Switzerland.[4]
In a 2010 interview on German television, it appeared that the former minister, who had adopted a very critical stance of the shadow banking system, attributed characteristics of the private equity industry to hedge funds.[5] Peer Steinbrück is a Member of Parliament (Bundestag) since 2009. He has been a prominent speaker for the SPD, especially on economic matters.
Candidate for Chancellor [edit]
On 9 December 2012 an extraordinary National Assembly of the SPD elected Steinbrück, with 93.45% of the votes, as candidate for Federal Chancellor, to run in the 2013 federal elections against Angela Merkel.
Controversy over Italian election comment [edit]
On 26 February 2013 Steinbrück said he was "appalled that two clowns have won" Italy's February 24-25 election. The vote was actually inconclusive with no party garnering a majority in parliament, although Grillo's anti-establishment party surged dramatically. In reaction, Italian President Giorgio Napolitano cancelled a dinner in Berlin with Steinbrück, who was German opposition's chancellor candidate.[6] President Napolitano, an 87-year-old former communist with no natural affinity for Berlusconi or Grillo, made clear that as head of state he would brook no insults to national pride.
References [edit]
- ^ Melissa Eddy: Merkel's Former Finance Minister to Run Against Her. nytimes.com. Retrieved 29 September 2012
- ^ Moulson, Geir (28 September 2012). "Peer Steinbrueck, Former Finance Minister, To Challenge German Chancellor Angela Merkel In 2013". The Huffington Post. AP. Retrieved 28 September 2012.
- ^ "German ridicule for UK policies". BBC News. 10 December 2008. Retrieved 10 December 2008.
- ^ "Germany's Wild West Tone Angers the Swiss". Spiegel Online. Retrieved 12 July 2009.
- ^ "Broadcast of interview on Beckmann". ARD (broadcaster). Retrieved 19 February 2011.
- ^ "Italy president snubs German candidate over clown gaffe". Reuters. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
External links [edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Peer Steinbrück |
- Peer Steinbrück's Homepage (German)
- Interview with Peer Steinbrück: "Kennen Sie denn Hawaii-Toast?" (German, sbznet.de)
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Uwe Thomas |
Minister of Economy of Schleswig-Holstein 1993–1998 |
Succeeded by Horst Günter Bülck |
| Preceded by Bodo Hombach |
Minister of Economy of North Rhine-Westphalia 1998–2000 |
Succeeded by Ernst Schwanhold |
| Preceded by Heinz Schleußer |
Minister of Finance of North Rhine-Westphalia 2000–2002 |
Succeeded by Jochen Dieckmann |
| Preceded by Wolfgang Clement |
Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia 2002–2005 |
Succeeded by Jürgen Rüttgers |
| Preceded by Hans Eichel |
Minister of Finance 2005–2009 |
Succeeded by Wolfgang Schäuble |
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