Herbert Reul
Herbert Reul | |
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Member of the European Parliament | |
Assumed office 2004 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Langenfeld, Rhineland, West Germany (now Germany) | 7 August 1952
Nationality | ![]() |
Political party | ![]() Christian Democratic Union ![]() European People's Party (EPP) |
Alma mater | University of Cologne |
Profession | Teacher[1] |
Herbert Reul (b. 31 August 1952 Langenfeld, Rhineland) is a German politician and Member of the European Parliament for North Rhine-Westphalia. He is a member of the conservative Christian Democratic Union, part of the European People's Party.
Early career
The son of a mayor, Reul joined the youth wing of the CDU, the Junge Union, at the age of 18. In 1975, while still a student at University of Cologne, he became a town councillor in his hometown of Leichlingen, near Cologne, and served for 17 years.[2] From 1981 until 1985, he worked as a secondary school teacher.
Political career
Career in state politics
In the 1985 state elections, Reul gained a seat in the State Parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia and occupied it for 19 years.[3] In parliament, he was his political group's spokesperson on education policy from 1985 to 1991. Between 1991 and 2003, he served as Secretary General of the CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia, under the leadership of successive chairmen Norbert Blüm (1993-99) and Jürgen Rüttgers (1999-2003).[4]
Member of the European Parliament
Reul first became a Member of the European Parliament in the 2004 European elections. He has since been a member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy. Between 2006 and 2009, he also served as the energy spokesman for the German Christian Democrats’ delegation in the European People’s Party in the Parliament.[5]
Since 2012, Reul has been a member of the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Korean Peninsula. He was previously a member of the delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China between 2004 and 2012.
In addition to his committee assignments, Reul is a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Long Term Investment and Reindustrialisation[6] and the European Parliament Intergroup on Climate Change, Biodiversity and Sustainable Development.
Role in national politics
Reul was a CDU delegate to the Federal Convention for the purpose of electing the President of Germany in 1994, 1999, 2004, 2009 and 2010. Since 2012, he has been serving on the Presidium of the CDU, under the leadership of chairwoman Angela Merkel. In the negotiations to form a Grand Coalition of Merkel's Christian Democrats (CDU) together with the Bavarian CSU) and the Social Democrats (SPD) following the 2013 German elections, he led the CDU/CSU delegation in the working group on banking regulation and the Eurozone; his co-chair from the SPD was Martin Schulz.[7]
Other activities
- Institute of Energy Economics at the University of Cologne, Member of the Advisory Board (since 2016)
- Institute for European Politics (IEP), Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2015)[8]
- Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2015)[9]
- RheinEnergie AG, Member of the Supervisory Board (2012-2014),[10] Member of the Advisory Board (since 2014)
- Institute for Mining and Energy Law at the Ruhr University Bochum, Member of the Advisory Board (since 2013)[11]
- Westdeutscher Rundfunk (WDR), Member of the Broadcasting Council (2003-2009), Substitute Member of the Broadcasting Council (since 2009)
Controversy
Shortly after the CDU donations scandal and amid the campaign for the state elections in 2000, Reul became the target of public criticism when he – in his capacity as Secretary General of the CDU in North Rhine-Westphalia – had his party pay for a private trip to the Bayreuth Festival.[12]
References
- ^ Silke Wettach (September 16, 2009), Sceptical industrialist European Voice.
- ^ Silke Wettach (September 16, 2009), Sceptical industrialist European Voice.
- ^ Silke Wettach (September 16, 2009), Sceptical industrialist European Voice.
- ^ Matt Marshall (November 17, 1997), Entrepreneur Programs Help Change Ethos in German State Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Silke Wettach (September 16, 2009), Sceptical industrialist European Voice.
- ^ Members European Parliament Intergroup on Long Term Investment and Reindustrialisation.
- ^ Toby Vogel (October 31, 2013), German parties agree outlines of Europe policy European Voice.
- ^ Board of Trustees Institute for European Politics (IEP).
- ^ Board of Trustees Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing.
- ^ 2014 Annual Report RheinEnergie AG.
- ^ Board of Trustees Institute for Mining and Energy Law at the Ruhr University Bochum.
- ^ Thomas Seim (February 25, 2000), Generalsekretär erhöhte sein Gehalt / Partei zahlte Privatflug: Neue Vorwürfe gegen CDU-Politiker Reul in NRW Berliner Zeitung.