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Michaele Schreyer (born 9 August 1951 in

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

) was a European Commissioner from September 1999 to November 2004, holding the budget portfolio. A citizen of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

, she is a member of the

German Green Party Alliance 90/The Greens (german: Bündnis 90/Die Grünen, ), often simply referred to as the Greens ( ), is a green political party in Germany. It was formed in 1993 as the merger of The Greens (formed in West Germany in 1980) and Alliance 90 (fo ...

Education

Schreyer wrote her doctoral thesis on tax federalism.

Political career

From 1983 until 1987, Schreyer worked as an advisor on financial policy to the Green Party's parliamentary group in the

Bundestag The Bundestag (, "Federal Diet") is the German federal parliament. It is the only federal representative body that is directly elected by the German people. It is comparable to the United States House of Representatives or the House of Common ...

.Mistress of her brief
'' European Voice'', 26 April 2000. In 1989, Schreyer was appointed State Minister for Urban Development in the government of Governing Mayor

Walter Momper Walter Momper (born 21 February 1945) is a German politician and former Governing Mayor of Berlin (West Berlin 1989–1990, reunited Berlin 1990–1991). Whilst Governing Mayor, he served as President of the German Bundesrat, President of the B ...

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and List of cities in Germany by population, largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's List of cities in the European Union by population within ci ...

. In the 1990 state elections, she was elected to the

Abgeordnetenhaus of Berlin The Abgeordnetenhaus of Berlin (House of Deputies) () is the state parliament (''Landtag'') of Berlin, Germany according to the city-state's constitution. In 1993 the parliament moved from Rathaus Schöneberg to its present house on Niederkirchne ...

. Between 1995 and 1997, she served as chairwoman of the Sub-Committee on Public Housing. In 1998, she assumed the leadership of the Green Party's parliamentary group, alongside

Renate Künast Renate Elly Künast (born 15 December 1955) is a German politician of Alliance 90/The Greens party. She was the Minister of Consumer Protection, Food and Agriculture from 2001 to 2005 and subsequently served as chairwoman of her party's parliame ...

European Commissioner, 2000–2004

In 2000, Germany's Chancellor

Gerhard Schröder Gerhard Fritz Kurt "Gerd" Schröder (; born 7 April 1944) is a German lobbyist and former politician, who served as the chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. From 1999 to 2004, he was also the Leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germa ...

nominated Schreyer, alongside

Günter Verheugen Günter Verheugen (born 28 April 1944) is a German politician who served as European Commissioner for Enlargement from 1999 to 2004, and then as European Commissioner for Enterprise and Industry from 2004 to 2010. He was also one of five vice pr ...

, as one of two German members of the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...

under President

Romano Prodi Romano Antonio Prodi (; born 9 August 1939) is an Italian politician, economist, academic, senior civil servant, and business executive who served as the tenth president of the European Commission from 1999 to 2004. He served twice as Pr ...

. In the

Prodi Commission The Prodi Commission was the European Commission in office between 1999 and 2004. The administration was led by former Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi. History The commission took office on 16 September 1999 following the scandal and sub ...

, Schreyer took on an enlarged portfolio for control of the 80 billion euro ($83.73 billion) budget of the European Union. During Schreyer's time in office, the European Commission filed a high-profile civil lawsuit in the United States against

Philip Morris International Philip Morris International Inc. (PMI) is an American multinational tobacco company, with products sold in over 180 countries. The most recognized and best selling product of the company is Marlboro. Philip Morris International is often ref ...

and

R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company The R. J. Reynolds Tobacco Company (RJR) is an American tobacco manufacturing company based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and headquartered at the RJR Plaza Building. Founded by R. J. Reynolds in 1875, it is the second-largest tobacco comp ...

seeking damages for what it called their involvement with organized crime in smuggling cigarettes into Europe. By 2004, Schreyer and Philip Morris had negotiated a

settlement Settlement may refer to: *Human settlement, a community where people live *Settlement (structural), the distortion or disruption of parts of a building * Closing (real estate), the final step in executing a real estate transaction *Settlement (fin ...

under which the company agreed to pay about $1 billion over 12 years.

Other activities

European Movement Germany European Movement Germany (EM Germany) is a non-partisan network of interest groups in the field of EU politics in Germany. It cooperates closely with all EU stakeholders on a national and European level, most particularly with the German Federal ...

, Vice President * Schwarzkopf Foundation, Member of the BoardMembers of the Board
Schwarzkopf Foundation. *

Heinrich Böll Foundation The Heinrich Böll Foundation (german: Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung e.V., HBS) is a German, legally independent political foundation. Affiliated with the German Green Party, it was founded in 1997 when three predecessors merged. The foundation was n ...

, Member of the Supervisory Board (2007-2014) Schreyer is co-author (with Lutz Mez) of the publication "ERENE – European Community for Renewable Energy".

References

External links

Commissioner Michaele Schreyer – Member of the European Commission
web-archive of the EU Commission

1951 births Living people German European Commissioners Alliance 90/The Greens politicians Senators of Berlin Women European Commissioners 20th-century German politicians 21st-century German politicians 20th-century German women politicians 21st-century German women politicians {{Alliance 90/The Greens