Ulla Tørnæs

Ulla Tørnæs
Ulla Tørnæs
Minister for Science, Technology, Information and Higher Education of Denmark
	In office; 29 February 2016 – 28 November 2016
Preceded by	Esben Lunde Larsen
Succeeded by	Søren Pind
Minister for Development Cooperation
	In office; 28 November 2016 – 27 June 2019
Succeeded by	Rasmus Prehn
Personal details
Born	Ulla Tørnæs; 4 September 1962 (age 61); Esbjerg, Denmark
Political party	Danish:; Venstre; EU:; Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
Alma mater	Odense University; University of Savoy; Copenhagen Business School;

Ulla Pedersen Tørnæs (born 4 September 1962) is a Danish politician of the Liberal Party. From 1994 to 2014, she was a member of the Danish parliament (Folketing). She served as Minister for Science, Technology, Information and Higher Education in the Lars Løkke Rasmussen II Cabinet of Denmark from February 2016 to November 2016 and as the Minister for Development Cooperation in the Lars Løkke Rasmussen III Cabinet.

Political career

Tørnæs served as Minister for Education in the Cabinet of Anders Fogh Rasmussen I (2001–2005) and as Minister for Development Cooperation in the Cabinet of Anders Fogh Rasmussen II from 18 February 2005. From 2007, she was a member of the World Bank Group’s High Level Advisory Council on Women's Economic Empowerment, which was chaired by Danny Leipziger and Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul.^[1] She was also a member of the Prime Minister’s Commission on Effective Development Cooperation with Africa which held meetings between April and October 2008.^[2]

From 2010 until 2016, Tørnæs was a member of the management committee of the Danish Liberal Democracy Programme (DLDP).

Tørnæs became a Member of the European Parliament following the 2014 European elections. A member of the ALDE (Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe) political faction, she served as Vice-Chairwoman of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs. In 2015, she was the lead negotiator for the ALDE group on the eCall system.^[3]

In addition to her committee assignments, Tørnæs was a member of the parliament’s delegation for relations with the countries of Southeast Asia and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Tørnæs left the European Parliament on 29 February 2016, becoming Minister for Science, Technology, Information and Higher Education in the Lars Løkke Rasmussen II Cabinet, where she proposed the education ceiling. Her successor is Morten Løkkegaard.

From 28 November 2016 until 2019, Tørnæs again served as Minister for Development Cooperation.

African Development Bank (AfDB), Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016–2019)^[4]
Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA), World Bank Group, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016–2019)^[5]
World Bank, Ex-Officio Member of the Board of Governors (2016–2019)^[6]
Danish Liberal Democracy Programme, Member of the Board
Plan International Denmark, Member of the Board (2010-2013)^[7]

Tørnæs is the daughter of former minister Laurits Tørnæs and Katty Tørnæs.

Political offices
Preceded by Margrethe Vestager	Education Minister of Denmark 2001–2005	Succeeded by Bertel Haarder
Preceded by Bertel Haarder	Minister for Development Cooperation of Denmark 2005–2010	Succeeded by Søren Pind