Ola Skjåk Bræk (4 February 1912 in

Eidsvoll Eidsvoll (; sometimes written as ''Eidsvold'') is a Municipalities of Norway, municipality in Akershus Counties of Norway, county, Norway. It is part of the Romerike Districts of Norway, traditional region. The administrative centre of the munic ...

– 26 December 1999 in

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; ), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros, and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2022, it had a population of 212,660. Trondheim is the third most populous municipality in Norway, and is ...

) was a Norwegian banker and politician for the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

. He was Minister of Industry in 1972–1973. Skjåk Bræk was born in Eidsvoll, the second child of the local banker Gudbrand Bræk and his wife Elisabeth Fischer. Gudbrand Bræk managed Eidsvoll Sparebank, the local savings bank, and was also a co-founder of Bøndernes Bank. Ola studied law at the

University of Oslo The University of Oslo (; ) is a public university, public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation#Europe, oldest university in Norway. Originally named the Royal Frederick Univ ...

and earned his cand.jur. degree in 1935. He married Ingeborg Wergeland, a noted peace activist. Among their children is Lise Skjåk Bræk, a fashion and costume designer. Ola Skjåk Bræk moved to

Ålesund Ålesund () is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The town is the administrative centre of Ålesund Municipality. The centre of the town of Ålesund lies on the islands of Hessa, Aspøya, Ålesund, Asp� ...

in 1950 to assume the presidency of Aalesund Nye Kreditbank, a savings and loan bank for the coastal region which eventually became merged into Sunnmørsbanken. He worked in this area - with leave for his time in the cabinet - until 1979, when he retired and moved to Trondheim. He served in the position of deputy representative to the Norwegian Parliament from

Møre og Romsdal Møre og Romsdal (; ) is a Counties of Norway, county in the northernmost part of Western Norway, Western Norway. It borders the counties of Trøndelag, Innlandet, and Vestland. The county administration is located in the Molde (town), town of M ...

during the terms 1965–1969 and 1973–1977. He became Minister of Industry in the coalition cabinet formed by Lars Korvald after Trygve Bratteli resigned his cabinet after a

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

defeated his proposal for Norway to join the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. Skjåk Bræk ended up on the anti-EEC side, and as such stayed in the Liberal Party after the party split in 1972. He played an active role in the post-World War II economic development in

Western Norway Western Norway (; ) is the Regions of Norway, region along the Atlantic coast of southern Norway. It consists of the Counties of Norway, counties Rogaland, Vestland, and Møre og Romsdal. The region has no official or political-administrative fu ...

and took political and professional interest in the appropriate use of Norway's

natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest, and cultural value. ...

. Ola Skjåk Bræk published his memoirs ''Hva brast så høyt?'' () in 1990, expressing several concerns about Norwegian economic policy.

References

External links

The family tree of Ola Skjåk Bræk om Geni.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Braek, Ola Skjaak 1912 births 1999 deaths People from Eidsvoll Norwegian bankers Government ministers of Norway Liberal Party (Norway) politicians University of Oslo alumni Deputy members of the Storting Ministers of trade and shipping of Norway