Kurt Beck
Kurt Beck | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate | |||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 26 October 1994 – 15 January 2013 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Deputy |
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Preceded by | Rudolf Scharping | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Malu Dreyer | ||||||||||||||||||||||
President of the Bundesrat | |||||||||||||||||||||||
In office 1 November 2000 – 31 October 2001 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
First Vice President | Kurt Biedenkopf | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Preceded by | Kurt Biedenkopf | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Succeeded by | Klaus Wowereit | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Personal details | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Bad Bergzabern, French occupation zone, Allied-occupied Germany {(now Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany) | 5 February 1949||||||||||||||||||||||
Political party | Social Democratic Party (1972–) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Occupation |
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Military service | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Allegiance | Germany | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Branch/service | Bundeswehr | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Years of service | 1968–1969 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Unit | Army (Heer) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Kurt Beck (born 5 February 1949) is a German politician of the
On 28 September 2012 Beck announced his resignation from the post of minister-president. He was succeeded by social minister Malu Dreyer.[1][2]
Following Peter Struck's death in 2012, Beck – together with Dieter Schulte – became the chair of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation; he served until 2020, when he was replaced with Martin Schulz.[3][4]
Early life and career
Beck was born in
From 1963 to 1968, Beck became an electrician. After military duty in 1968 and 1969, he graduated from an evening school in 1972. Since then, he served as an employee representative on
Political career
After joining the SPD in 1972, mainly because of the Party's programme as well as the personality of Willy Brandt, Beck became chairman of the SPD of Rhineland Palatinate in 1993 and deputy chairman of the federal party in 2003. He served in this function until 14 May 2006.
Beck has been active in local affairs since 1974, when he was first elected a member of the
Minister-President of Rhineland-Palatinate, 1994–2013
On 26 October 1994 Kurt Beck was elected
During his time in office, Beck's decisions in Rhineland-Palatinate to increase efficiency in the state government via administrative reorganisation, and to introduce full-day schooling and free kindergartens, drew national attention. The state also emerged as one of the country’s top economic performers.[5] When the United States Armed Forces closed dozens of camps and barracks with the loss of 100,000 jobs, Beck's government invested heavily in retraining schemes, creating 40,000 new jobs.[6]
In 2000 and 2001, Beck was
In September 2012, Beck announced his resignation. He had been under pressure for weeks over the bankruptcy of the Nürburgring motorsports complex in Rhineland-Palatinate, one of the world's most famous race tracks.[7]
Chairman of the SPD, 2006–2008
When Matthias Platzeck had to resign for medical reasons in 2006, Beck was officially elected as chairman of the SPD with the approval of 95% of the delegates.[8] He became the party’s fourth chairman in seven years.[9]
Beck decided not to join the cabinet and succeed
During his time in office as party leader, Beck most notably negotiated an agreement with Merkel’s Christian Democrats in April 2017 on a partial privatization of national railway Deutsche Bahn's passenger and freight divisions.[12] Meanwhile, Beck's decision in early 2008 to allow regional cooperation with the left-wing populist Left Party in western German state parliaments caused a rift within his party and triggered a slump in opinion poll ratings for the SPD and him personally.[13]
On 7 September 2008, Beck resigned as chairman at a party meeting in Werder, Brandenburg and Frank-Walter Steinmeier was chosen as the SPD candidate for Chancellor in the 2009 election, while Franz Müntefering replaced Beck as chairman after an interim of Steinmeier.[14] At the time, he said that he was a victim of intrigue inside the SPD.[15]
Life after politics
In March 2017, Beck was appointed the government's official commissioner for the victims of the attack at the Christmas market at Berlin's Breitscheidplatz on 19 December 2016. Later that year, together with German Justice Minister Heiko Maas, he presented his final report.[16][17]
Controversies
Henrico Frank
Near the end of 2006, Beck recommended to Henrico Frank, an unemployed construction worker from Wiesbaden, to wash himself and shave so he could get a job.[18] Following a media controversy about Beck's behaviour, Frank declined all jobs offered to him by the state chamber. Later, he was hired as a punk rock expert for iMusic TV.[19]
Afghanistan
In April 2007, Beck proposed a peace conference in Afghanistan with the inclusion of "moderate Taliban".[20] The Foreign Minister of Afghanistan, Rangin Dadfar Spanta, thus accused him of being naïve. He compared the idea of "moderate Taliban" to distinguishing between moderate and radical right-wing extremists in Rhineland-Palatinate.[21] The German public mostly ignored the affair.
Other activities
Corporate boards
- Boehringer Ingelheim, Member of the Advisory Board (since 2013)[22]
Non-profit organizations
- Stiftung Hambacher Schloss, Chair of the Advisory Board (since 2020)[23]
- European Foundation for the Speyer Cathedral, Chairman of the Board of Trustees[24]
- Denkwerk Demokratie, Member of the Advisory Board[25]
- Fritz Walter Foundation, Chair of the Advisory Board[26]
- Stefan Morsch Foundation, Member of the Board of Trustees (since 2013)[27]
- Stiftung Institut für Herzinfarktforschung (IHF), Member of the Board of Trustees[28]
- Stiftung Tausendgut, Member of the Board of Trustees[29]
Honours and awards
- 1983: Grand Cross Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
- 2001: Grand Cross of the Order of the Star of Romania
- 2004 Grand Cross of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
- Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour
- Grand Cross of the Order Pro Merito Melitensi of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
- Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres of the French Republic
- 1997: Honorary Master of the Palatine Crafts
- 2005: Business Award of the Union of medium-sized enterprises
- Order of Merit of the Senate of the Republic of Chile
- Honorary Citizen of Opole, Poland
- Honorary doctorate from Francis Marion University (USA)
- Honorary Citizen of the southern Chinese province of Fujian
- Commandeur of the wine fraternity Chevaliers du Tastevin, France
Personal life
Beck is Catholic. He lives with his wife, Roswitha, whom he married in 1968 in Steinfeld, Rhineland-Palatinate. They have one son (Stefan Beck).
References
- ^ "Steinbrück: We want to remove this government". Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 29 September 2012.
- ^ "Beck hört als Ministerpräsident und SPD-Chef in Rheinland-Pfalz auf". Der Spiegel. 28 September 2012.
- ^ Martin Schulz zum Vorsitzenden der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V. gewählt Friedrich Ebert Foundation, press release of 14 December 2020.
- ^ Schulz zum Chef der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung gewählt Der Spiegel, 15 December 2020.
- ^ Hugh Williamson (12 May 2006), Doubts surround SPD’s down-to-earth new leader Financial Times.
- New York Times.
- Spiegel Online, 28 September 2012.
- ^ Kurt Beck valgt til formand for tyske socialdemokrater
- ^ Hugh Williamson (12 May 2006), Doubts surround SPD’s down-to-earth new leader Financial Times.
- ^ Judy Dempsey (14 November 2007), Merkel's coalition is facing discontent International Herald Tribune.
- ^ SPD-Chef Beck im Tief Viele SPD-Wähler bevorzugen Merkel - Deutschland - sueddeutsche.de Archived 3 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine
- Spiegel Online, 29 April 2008.
- Spiegel Online, 15 March 2008.
- ^ "German SPD party reshuffles leadership, with eye on election", Xinhua, 7 September 2008.
- ^ demission declaration of Kurt Beck (in German) Archived 9 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Jefferson Chase (13 December 2017), German government criticized over terror victims compensation Deutsche Welle.
- New York Times.
- ^ Why Germany Needs Fewer Economists, More Stylists | NEWS | Deutsche Welle | 15.12.2006
- ^ Arbeitsloser Beck-Kritiker: Henrico Frank hat einen Job - Wirtschaft - Spiegel Online - Nachrichten
- ^ Taliban-Äußerungen: Afghanistans Außenminister hält Beck Ahnungslosigkeit vor - Politik - Spiegel Online - Nachrichten
- ^ Afghan Top Diplomat Rejects German Call for Talks With Taliban | Germany | Deutsche Welle | 05.04.2007
- ^ 2013 Annual Report Archived 28 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Boehringer Ingelheim.
- ^ Neuer Beirat der Stiftung Hambacher Schloss kommt erstmals zusammen Die Rheinpfalz, 25 August 2020.
- ^ Board of Trustees Archived 29 December 2018 at the Wayback Machine European Foundation for the Speyer Cathedral.
- ^ Advisory Board Archived 28 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Denkwerk Demokratie.
- ^ Advisory Board Archived 18 November 2017 at the Wayback Machine Fritz Walter Foundation.
- ^ Kurt Beck ins Kuratorium der Stefan-Morsch-Stiftung gewählt Archived 28 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Stefan Morsch Foundation, press release of 29 June 2013.
- ^ Board of Trustees Stiftung Institut für Herzinfarktforschung (IHF).
- ^ Board of Trustees Stiftung Tausendgut.