Pascal Couchepin
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| Pascal Couchepin | |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 01 January 2008 |
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| Vice President | Hans-Rudolf Merz |
| Preceded by | Micheline Calmy-Rey |
| In office 01 January 2003 – 31 December 2003 |
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| Vice President | Ruth Metzler-Arnold |
| Preceded by | Kaspar Villiger |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Deiss |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 01 January 1998 |
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| Preceded by | Jean-Pascal Delamuraz |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 01 January 2003 |
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| Preceded by | Ruth Dreifuss |
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| In office 01 January 1998 – 31 December 2002 |
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| Preceded by | Jean-Pascal Delamuraz |
| Succeeded by | Joseph Deiss |
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| Born | 5 April 1942 Martigny, Switzerland |
| Political party | FDP |
| Spouse | Brigitte Rendu |
| Alma mater | University of Lausanne |
Pascal Couchepin (born April 5, 1942) is a Swiss politician, member of the Swiss Federal Council since 1998 and President of the Confederation in 2003 and 2008. He has been heading the Federal Department of Home Affairs (Swiss interior ministry) since 2003.
He was elected to the Swiss Federal Council on March 11, 1998 as a member of the Free Democratic Party (FDP/PRD) and the canton of Valais. In 1998 he took over the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, in which position he fought against the Swiss government contributing any money to the $1.25 billion settlement between Swiss banks and Holocaust survivors. He was quoted as saying that "there is no reason for the Swiss Government to pay anything", as a government commission had shown "we did what was possible in the hard times of the war."[1]. In 2003 he moved to the Federal Department of Home Affairs.
He was the President of the Confederation in 2003. On 13 December 2006, he was elected vice-president of the Federal Council for 2007, and, on 12 December 2007 was elected President of the Confederation in 2008.
Previously, he had been Deputy Mayor (1976) and Mayor of Martigny (since 1984) and, from 1979 to 1998, member of the National Council.
Couchepin holds a degree in Law from the University of Lausanne, is father of three (2 daughters and a son) and has two grandchildren.
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Official biography
- Profile of Pascal Couchepin with election results on the website of the Swiss Federal Council.
- Yves Fournier: Pascal Couchepin in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland. Version of 2005-08-11.
- Biography of Pascal Couchepin on the website of the Swiss Parliament. (French)
| Political offices | ||
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| Preceded by Jean-Pascal Delamuraz |
Member of the Swiss Federal Council 1998 – present |
Incumbent |
| Preceded by Kaspar Villiger |
President of Switzerland 2003 |
Succeeded by Joseph Deiss |
| Preceded by Micheline Calmy-Rey |
President of Switzerland 2008 – present |
Incumbent |
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