Freddy Willockx

Frederik "Freddy" AA Willockx ( born September 2, 1947 in Sint -Niklaas, East Flanders, Belgium) is a Belgian politician of the Socialist Party Other ( sp.a ).

Biography

After school he studied economics at the University of Ghent and was after graduation there research assistant professor of economics, Marcel Alfons Gilbert van Meerhaeghe.

Willockx began his political career in 1971 with the election as a member of the municipal council of Sint -Niklaas. In 1973, he gave up an academic career and was instead Attaché to the cabinet of former economy minister Willy Claes. After (Assistant ) of Sint -Niklaas, he was alderman in 1974, he resigned from the staff of Willy Claes and was also Secretary General of the General Labour Federation of Belgium ( ABVV ) in Sint Niklaas Dendermonde. After that, he was Deputy National Secretary in 1977 the Socialist Party.

In 1979 he was first elected to the Chamber of Deputies and belonged to this until 1984.

In 1980 he was appointed by Prime Minister Wilfried Martens on the Secretary of the Treasury and was then after a cabinet reshuffle of 1980 to the end of Martens office on 6 April 1981 Minister of Post, Telegraph and Telephone Office ( PTT).

The Office of the Minister of Post, Telegraph and Telephone beings he held from May 1988 to January 1989 in the seventh government of Martens. Subsequently, he was between 1989 and 1994 for the first time the mayor of his hometown of Sint -Niklaas.

In March 1992, Prime Minister Jean -Luc Dehaene called him at the same time as minister for pensions in his first cabinet. This he belonged until 18 July 1994 when he became a member of the 4th European Parliament.

After his resignation from the European Parliament, he was elected again in 1999 as a member of the Chamber of Deputies and upholds the interests of the Socialist Party since Anders.

In July 1999, the new Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt appointed him government commissioner in its first government. As such, he was attached to the Minister for Social Affairs and Pensions, Frank Vandenbroucke and tasked with the dioxin problem.

After retiring from the government in January 2001, he was mayor of Sint -Niklaas again and held this office until 2010.

For his political merits him the honorary title of Minister of State was awarded on 28 January 2002 and with that the membership of the Privy Council.

Willockx, the Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown was awarded on 9 June 1999, written after his resignation as mayor of Sint -Niklaas in 2010 his memoirs under the title of Here klopt mijn hard.