Laurens Jan Brinkhorst

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Laurens Jan Brinkhorst
Laurens Jan Brinkhorst van D66 - NL-HaNA Anefo 931-1206 WM376.jpg
Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
11 May 1973 – 8 September 1977
Prime Minister Joop den Uyl
Deputy Prime Minister
In office
31 March 2005 – 7 July 2006
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende
Preceded by Gerrit Zalm
Thom de Graaf
Succeeded by Gerrit Zalm
Minister of Economic Affairs
In office
27 May 2003 – 7 July 2006
Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende
Preceded by Annemarie Jorritsma-Lebbink
Succeeded by Joop Wijn
Personal details
Born Laurens Jan Brinkhorst
(1937-03-18) 18 March 1937 (age 87)
Zwolle, Netherlands
Nationality Dutch
Political party D66
Spouse(s) Jantien Heringa
Children Marius Brinkhorst
Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands
Alma mater Rijksuniversiteit Leiden
Occupation Politician
Website D66 Biography

Laurens Jan Brinkhorst (born 18 March 1937 in Zwolle) is a Dutch D66 politician. Brinkhorst was an Undersecretary of State of foreign affairs and a Minister of agriculture. Furthermore, he was the leader of the D66-group in the Second Chamber of the Dutch parliament. He was also a minister of economic affairs in the second Balkenende cabinet. Journalists gave him the nickname Brilly the kid.

Personal life

Laurens-Jan Brinkhorst was born in the city of Zwolle. After getting his high school diploma (gymnasium-B-diploma in Dutch) he studied law at the University of Leiden (Rijksuniversiteit Leiden in Dutch) (doctoral exam in 1959). He got his MA in Public Law and Government at Columbia University in New York City. Afterwards he worked at Shearman & Sterling in New York City. He married Jantien Heringa (born 2 February 1935 in Voorburg), daughter of Ewardus Heringa (Den Haag, 14 November 1904 - Den Haag, 30 November 1988) and wife (m. Utrecht, 4 August 1930) Petronela Johanna Roskam (Utrecht, 20 August 1905 - Den Haag, 19 December 1991). They are the parents of Marius Brinkhorst (born 9 February 1964) and the Dutch princess Laurentien Brinkhorst, who married Prince Constantijn in 2001.[1]

Career in politics and academia

Staatssecretaris Brinkhorst talks with the second chamber members of his party during the cabinets formation of 1977.

From 1962, and from 1965 as a director, he worked at the Europe-institute at the Rijksuniversiteit Leiden where he became a Reader (Lector) in 1965 as well. During the period 1967-1973 he was Professor of European Law at the University of Groningen (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen in Dutch). On 11 May 1973, he became Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet of Den Uyl.

In 1977 he was again a member of the Second Chamber of the Dutch parliament for D66 and in 1981 became the leader of his party in parliament. From 1983-1987 he was Ambassador of the European Community in Japan. In 1987 he became a correspondent of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences.[2] In 1994 Brinkhorst became a member of the European Parliament, serving there until 1999.

Brinkhorst was also a member of the Provinciale Staten (the provincial parliament) of the province of Groningen for D66, a member of the board of advice of the World Resources Institute in Washington DC, a member of the board of governors of the Nederlands Economisch Instituut (Dutch Economical Institute), a professor by special appointment of international environmental law at the University of Leiden, a member of the Board of Directors of the Salzburg Seminar, a member of the Board of Directors of the International Institute of Sustainable Development, and a professor (on a temporary basis) of international environmental law at the University of Lausanne.

On 8 June 1999 he became the minister of agriculture, environmental control and fishery in the cabinet Kok-II. Afterwards (2002) he became an Adviser of European Affairs at NautaDulith in Brussels and was awarded a professorship in transnational and European Governance at the University of Tilburg. After the electoral defeat of D66 he became a minister of economic affairs in the second Balkenende cabinet. Brinkhorst, as well as Alexander Pechtold, resigned from his minister post after the second Balkenende cabinet lost the confidence of parliament on 29 June 2006. The next day, Balkenende offered the resignation of the full cabinet to the Dutch Queen.

Since 1 November 2006, Brinkhorst is a full professor at the Leiden University. Brinkhorst is also a member of the Bilderberg Group.In addition, he is the vice-chairman of the Executive Committee of the Institute for Historical Justice and Reconciliation. Also, he is on the advisory board of OMFIF where he is regularly involved in meetings regarding the financial and monetary system.

Honours

National Honours

Foreign honours

References

  1. Geneall
  2. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. Quirinale website
  4. Japan Today
Political offices
Preceded by Deputy Prime Minister
31 March 2005–7 July 2006
With: Gerrit Zalm 2005–2006
Succeeded by
Gerrit Zalm
Preceded by Minister of Economic Affairs
27 May 2003–7 July 2006
Succeeded by
Joop Wijn