Joëlle Milquet
{{short description|Belgian politician}}
{{Update|date=October 2017}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Joëlle Milquet
|image = Joëlle Milquet 2004.jpg
|office = Minister of the Interior
|primeminister = Elio Di Rupo
|term_start = 6 December 2011
|term_end = 22 July 2014
|predecessor = Annemie Turtelboom
|successor = Melchior Wathelet
|birth_date = {{birth date and age|1961|2|17|df=y}}
|birth_place = Montignies-sur-Sambre, Belgium
|death_date =
|death_place =
|party = Humanist Democratic Centre
|alma_mater = Catholic University of Louvain
University of Amsterdam
}}
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet ({{IPA|fr|ʒɔ.ɛl milkɛ|lang}} ; born 17 February 1961) is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre (CDH).
Education
She studied classics at the {{Interlanguage link multi|Institute of the Sisters of Saint Andrew|fr|3=Institut Saint-André (Charleroi)}} in Charleroi, before going on to graduate in law from the Université Catholique de Louvain in 1984. In 1985, she took a post-graduate diploma in European law at the Universiteit van Amsterdam (UvA).
Career
She started her career at the Bar in Brussels. From 1995 to 1999 she was a delegate to the Belgian Senate. She has been the president of the CDH party since, and played a prominent role in the 2007-2008 formation negotiations for the Leterme I Government.{{cite web|url=http://www.ejustice.just.fgov.be/mopdf/2008/03/21_2.pdf|title=20 March 2008 – Royal Orders. Government – Dismissals – Appointments|publisher=The Belgian Official Journal|date=2008-03-21|pages=3–4|accessdate=2008-03-30|language=Dutch, French}} During the government formation negotiations she was given the nickname "Madame Non" (Mrs No) by the {{Interlanguage link multi|Flemish media|nl|3=Media in Vlaanderen}} for her fierce resistance to constitutional reform that would give more autonomy to the different communities of Belgium.[http://www.knack.be/nieuws/belgie/milquet---ik-ben-niet--madame-non--/site72-section24-article7397.html] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120210203533/http://www.knack.be/nieuws/belgie/milquet---ik-ben-niet--madame-non--/site72-section24-article7397.html|date=February 10, 2012}}
She was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Employment and Equal Opportunities in the Leterme I Government, which took office on 20 March 2008.
When the Leterme I government failed, Joëlle Milquet retained her seat on the Van Rompuy I Government, then on the Leterme II Government.
She was the Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Interior and for Equalities in the Di Rupo Government (2011-2014).[http://www.premier.be/fr/minister/jo%C3%ABlle-milquet-0]{{dead link|date=July 2014}} In June 2014 she became minister of Lower education, Culture in the Government of the French Community.
Ms. Milquet was Vice Minister-President and Minister for Education and Culture in the Government of the French Community until 2016. She currently serves as Chair of the Security Committee of Brussels' Regional Parliament. In October 2017, Ms Joëlle Milquet was appointed Special Adviser to President Jean-Claude Juncker for the compensation of victims of crime.{{cite web|url=http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEX-17-3711_en.htm |title= European Commission - Daily News 04 / 10 / 2017 |date= |accessdate=2017-10-04}}
As opinion maker and several times former minister she is often interviewed by Belgian newspapers and Television such as [https://www.rtbf.be/info/belgique/detail_joelle-milquet-n-a-pas-voulu-tromper-les-electeurs?id=10183198 RTBF], [https://www.lesoir.be/319871/article/2020-08-19/joelle-milquet-sinterroge-qui-decide-entre-le-centre-de-crise-et-le-conseil Le Soir] and [https://www.lalibre.be/belgique/politique-belge/joelle-milquet-avec-elio-di-rupo-on-avait-un-lieu-cache-ou-on-se-voyait-souvent-5d3b5017f20d5a58a8710b46 La Libre Belgique], [https://www.ln24.be/ LN24], Paris Match etc..
In January 2021, she was appointed President of the European Centre for Electoral Support's Strategic and Advisory Committee which is one of the most important organisations implementing electoral and democracy assistance projects worldwide funded by the European Union and its Member States.{{Cite web|title=Strategic Committee welcomes new members {{!}} ECES {{!}} European Centre for Electoral Support|url=https://parismatch.be/actualites/politique/474819/epreuves-trahisons-bonheur-nouveau-joelle-milquet-brise-le-silence-pour-paris-match|access-date=2021-02-22|website=www.eces.eu|language=en}}
In January 2025 she was appointed as Chair of the Board of Directors of [https://www.rtbf.be/ RTBF (Radio-télévision belge de la communauté française)], Belgium's national public broadcasting organization.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category-inline}}
- {{Official website|http://milquet.belgium.be/ }}
- {{in lang|fr}} [http://www.lecdh.be/mandataires/portrait.php?nr=91-000302-43 Joëlle Milquet]{{dead link|date=September 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} on the Humanist Democratic Centre (CDH) website
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{{s-bef|before=Annemie Turtelboom}}
{{s-ttl|title=Minister of the Interior|years=2011–2014}}
{{s-aft|after=Melchior Wathelet}}
{{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Milquet, Joelle}}
Category:20th-century Belgian politicians
Category:20th-century Belgian women politicians
Category:21st-century Belgian politicians
Category:21st-century Belgian women politicians
Category:Deputy prime ministers of Belgium
Category:Female interior ministers
Category:Government ministers of Belgium
Category:Humanist Democratic Centre politicians
Category:Ministers of the interior of Belgium
Category:Members of the Senate (Belgium)
Category:Politicians from Charleroi
Category:Université catholique de Louvain alumni
Category:Women government ministers of Belgium
{{Belgium-politician-stub}}