Norbert Lammert
| Norbert Lammert | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Norbert Lammert, 2014 | |
| President of the Bundestag | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 18 October 2005 | |
| President | Horst Köhler Christian Wulff Joachim Gauck |
| Preceded by | Wolfgang Thierse |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 November 1948 Bochum, Germany |
| Political party | CDU |
| Spouse(s) | Gertrud |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Ruhr University Bochum Oxford University |
| Profession | Sociologist |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Signature |  |
| Website | www |
Norbert Lammert (born 16 November 1948 in Bochum) is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). He has been the President of the Bundestag, the lower house of the German parliament, since 2005.
Early life and education
Lammert attended gymnasium in Bochum where he studied classics. He obtained his abitur in 1967. He carried out military service in the Bundeswehr from 1967 to 1969. Following his military service he went on to the University of Bochum, which included a period abroad at the University of Oxford, where he studied political science and modern history. He went on and obtained his Ph.D. (Dr. rer. soc.) from the University of Bochum in 1975.
Political career
Having joined the CDU in 1966, he was deputy chairman of the Bochum branch of the CDU. From 1978–1984, he was deputy leader of a part (Westfalen-Lippe) of the North Rhine-Westphalian branch of the Junge Union, the CDU youth organization. In 1980, he was elected to the Bundestag and has kept his mandate continuously until today. During his tenure in the Bundestag he served (as usual for all MdBs) on several committees.[1]
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Following the 2005 federal elections in which the CDU became the strongest party and formed a great coalition with the Social Democratic Party (SPD), Lammert was elected by the Bundestag on 18 October 2005 to replace Wolfgang Thierse of the SPD as its President. Lammert received 564 of 607 votes cast, including most of the SPD's votes. He was reelected to this post by the 17th Bundestag after the 2009 federal election with a similarly good result. In his capacity as president, he chairs the parliament’s Council of Elders, which – among other duties – determines daily legislative agenda items and assigning committee chairpersons based on party representation.
Political positions
Role of the parliament
Throughout his tenure, Lammert has not shied from speaking out against the government about potential threats to parliament's role.[2] In 2011, he questioned why the Bundestag had not been consulted on Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to close all nuclear plants following Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster.[3] He has insisted that members of parliament be consulted fully on the bailout schemes for the euro zone debt crisis.[4]
European integration
In 2012, Lammert said he wants a financial transaction tax to be introduced in as many countries as possible, “at least” in the Eurozone.[5]
Human rights
Following the ''Charlie Hebdo'' shooting in 2015, Lammert criticized Saudi Arabia for condemning the Paris attacks as a violation of Islam, "then two days later letting the blogger Raif Badawi be flogged in public in Jeddah for insulting Islam".[6]
Controversy
Party financing
In December 2010, Lammert imposed on the CDU a fine of 1.2 million euros ($1.6 million) for breaching party donation rules, for party funding violations in the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the time of the regional election in 2006.[7]
Plagiarism allegations
In July 2013, an anonymous internet blogger, using the name of Robert Schmidt, accused Lammert of having plagiarized other works when writing his dissertation.[8] Lammert rejected this reproach and asked the University of Bochum to check his dissertation; he also published it via internet. High-ranking politicians of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and of the German Green Party underlined that there should be no condemnation(s) in advance.[9]
Other activities
- Evonik Industries, Member of the Supervisory Board (2005-2007)
- Federal Cultural Foundation, ex-officio Member of the Board of Trustees
- Institute for Advanced Study, Member of the Board of Trustees (2009-2013)
- Konrad Adenauer Foundation, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Board
- Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Chairman of the Board of Trustees
- musikFabrik, Member of the Board of Trustees
- Norbert Lammert Foundation, Chairman of the Board of Trustees
- RAG AG, Member of the Supervisory Board
- RTL Television, Member of the Program Committee (1998-2007)
- Ruhrfestspiele, Member of the Supervisory Board
- Ruhr University Bochum, Member of the Board of Trustees (2002-2008)
Personal life
Lammert is member of the Catholic Church.[10] He is married to Gertrud and has four children.
Literature
- Michael F. Feldkamp, ed. (2007). Der Bundestagspräsident. Amt - Funktion - Person 16. München: Wahlperiode. ISBN 978-3-7892-8201-0.
References
- ↑ "Norbert Lammert profile on the Bundestag website". 15 November 2013.
- ↑ Stephen Brown and Madeline Chambers (February 17, 2012), Possible candidates for German presidency Reuters.
- ↑ Jon Hemming (March 17, 2011), Germany dismisses legal doubts on nuclear closures Reuters.
- ↑ Stephen Brown and Madeline Chambers (February 17, 2012), Possible candidates for German presidency Reuters.
- ↑ Allison Connolly (January 20, 2012), Bundestag President Wants Euro-Area Transaction Tax, Welt Says Bloomberg.
- ↑ Stephen Brown (January 15, 2015), Merkel Vows to Protect Germany's Jews and Muslims From Extremism New York Times.
- ↑ Rainer Buergin (December 23, 2010), Merkel's CDU Party Fined $1.6 Million for Donations Violation in Rhineland Bloomberg News.
- ↑ "Unregelmäßigkeiten in Doktorarbeit?: Hat auch Norbert Lammert abgekupfert?". FOCUS Online. 29 July 2013.
- ↑ FAZ July 30 2013: Opposition verteidigt Lammert gegen Plagiatsvorwurf
- ↑ "Lammert, Dr. Norbert". Deutscher Bundestag. Retrieved 2010-04-23.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Norbert Lammert. |
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Wolfgang Thierse |
President of the Bundestag 2005–Present |
Incumbent |
| Order of precedence | ||
| Preceded by Joachim Gauck as President |
Order of precedence of Germany as President of the Bundestag |
Succeeded by Angela Merkel as Chancellor |
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