Klaus Welle

Klaus Welle ( born July 3, 1964 in Beelen, Warendorf district ) is a German politician and, since March 2009 the Secretary-General of the European Parliament.

After graduating from high school Laurentianum in Warendorf in 1984, training in a bank, Westdeutsche Landesbank in Münster and studied economics at the University of Witten / Herdecke, with a focus on institutional theory and banking industry was in 1991 Secretary of State for European and Foreign Policy in the Federal office of CDU. He worked there under the Secretaries-General Volker Ruhe and Peter Hintze. In the years 1989-1998 he was a member of the national board of the Junge Union as a spokesman for European and Foreign Policy.

At the proposal of the Chairman of the European People's Party Wilfried Martens elected him the EPP in 1994 to its Secretary-General. During his tenure, until 1999, the opening of the EPP for numerous conservative factions and new members of the EU accession countries of Central and Eastern Europe and the foundations of the Young European People's Party, the European Senior Citizens' Union and the EPP- Business Association ( SME Union ) fell.

From 1999 to 2004 wave was Secretary General of the Group of the European People's Party in the European Parliament.

From 1 January 2004, he was Director General for Internal Politics in the European Parliament. When in January 2007 the European Parliament Hans -Gert Poettering (EPP ) has elected its new president, Klaus Welle was appointed Chief of Cabinet of the President.

On 16 March 2009 wave resigned the office of the Secretary General of the European Parliament as a successor to the Danes Harald Rømer, who went into retirement. In connection with subsidized holidays by Parliament for the Children's Parliament member, stood wave in February 2010 due to lack of transparency in financial management in the criticism.