Costante Degan (12 March 1930 – 1 July 1988) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

politician.

Biography

Degan was born on 12 March 1930 in

Mestre Mestre () is a borough of the ''comune'' (municipality) of Venice, on the mainland opposite the historical island city in the region of Veneto, Italy. Administratively, Mestre forms (together with the nearby Carpenedo) the ''Municipalità di ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. He would get a degree in engineering before working as an engineer. Degan joined the

Christian Democracy Christian democracy (sometimes named Centrist democracy) is a political ideology that emerged in 19th-century Europe under the influence of Catholic social teaching and neo-Calvinism. It was conceived as a combination of modern democratic ...

after a long youth militancy in the

Catholic Action Catholic Action is the name of groups of lay Catholics who advocate for increased Catholic influence on society. They were especially active in the nineteenth century in historically Catholic countries under anti-clerical regimes such as Spain, Ita ...

. He was municipal councilor in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, then in

Dolo Dolo is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Veneto, Italy. It is connected by the SP26 provincial road and is one of the towns of the Riviera del Brenta. The growth of the town of Dolo is due to the gradual downsizing of th ...

, he also served as

Mayor of Venice The mayor of Venice (Italian: ''sindaco di Venezia'') is an elected politician who, along with the Venice City Council of 36 members, is accountable for the strategic government of the municipality of Venice, Veneto, Italy. The current office hol ...

for a few days in 1988. He was a Deputy from 1963 to 1983 and a Senator from 1983 until his death in 1988. Degan served several times as Undersecretary of State, subsequently he served as Minister of Health from 1983 to 1986 and as Minister of Merchant Navy from 1986 to 1987. As Minister of Health, Degan dealt with assisted fertilization and radioactivity. Having held this position during the

Chernobyl disaster The Chernobyl disaster was a nuclear accident that occurred on 26 April 1986 at the No. 4 reactor in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, near the city of Pripyat in the north of the Ukrainian SSR in the Soviet Union. It is one of only two nuc ...

in 1986, he was the author of the prohibitions on the sale of milk and broad-leaf vegetables during the days of the radioactive emergency. He also presented the first

smoking ban Smoking bans, or smoke-free laws, are public policies, including criminal laws and occupational safety and health regulations, that prohibit tobacco smoking in certain spaces. The spaces most commonly affected by smoking bans are indoor work ...

bill in 1968 to ban cigarette use in restaurants. Degan died in 1988 at the age of 58 due to lung cancer in Mestre.

References

External links

Italian Parliament Page
1930 births 1988 deaths Politicians from the Metropolitan City of Venice Christian Democracy (Italy) politicians Italian Ministers of Health Deputies of Legislature IV of Italy Deputies of Legislature V of Italy Deputies of Legislature VI of Italy Deputies of Legislature VII of Italy Deputies of Legislature VIII of Italy Senators of Legislature IX of Italy Senators of Legislature X of Italy Mayors of Venice {{Italy-mayor-stub