Jan Pieter Hendrik "Piet Hein" Donner (born 20 October 1948) is a retired Dutch politician of the

Christian Democratic Appeal The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands. Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...

(CDA) party and

jurist A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyzes and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal education in law (a law degree) and often a Lawyer, legal prac ...

. He was granted the honorary title of

Minister of State Minister of state is a designation for a government minister, with varying meanings in different jurisdictions. In a number of European countries, the title is given as an honorific conferring a higher rank, often bestowed upon senior minister ...

on 21 December 2018.

Early life and career

The Donner family has produced a number of

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

judge A judge is a person who wiktionary:preside, presides over court proceedings, either alone or as a part of a judicial panel. In an adversarial system, the judge hears all the witnesses and any other Evidence (law), evidence presented by the barris ...

s. Piet Hein Donner's father, André Donner, was a judge at the

European Court of Justice The European Court of Justice (ECJ), officially the Court of Justice (), is the supreme court of the European Union in matters of European Union law. As a part of the Court of Justice of the European Union, it is tasked with interpreting ...

between 1958 and 1979, and was part of the government commission that looked into

Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (later Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands; 29 June 1911 – 1 December 2004) was Prince consort of the Netherlands, Prince of the Netherlands from 6 September 1948 to 30 April 1980 as the husband of Queen J ...

's dealings with the

Lockheed Corporation The Lockheed Corporation was an American aerospace manufacturer. Lockheed was founded in 1926 and merged in 1995 with Martin Marietta to form Lockheed Martin. Its founder, Allan Lockheed, had earlier founded the similarly named but otherwise-u ...

. His grandfather was

Jan Donner Jan Donner (3 February 1891 – 2 February 1981) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and jurist. He was granted the honorary title of Minister of State on 16 ...

, who served as Minister of Justice for the Anti-Revolutionary Party in the first De Geer cabinet and was later president of the Dutch

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

. His uncle Jan Hein Donner was a chess grandmaster and author. Donner attended a gymnasium in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

from March 1961 until May 1967 and applied at the

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam The (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public university, public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in ...

in June 1967, majoring in

Law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...

and obtaining a

Bachelor of Laws A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

degree in April 1969 before graduating with a

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is a postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in another subject. In many jurisdi ...

degree in July 1973. During his study, he joined the student society L.A.N.X. in 1968. Donner applied at the

University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in Washtenaw County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851, making it the List of municipalities in Michigan, fifth-most populous cit ...

in September 1973 for a

postgraduate education Postgraduate education, graduate education, or graduate school consists of Academic degree, academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications usually pursued by higher education, post-secondary students who have ...

in Law, working as a student researcher before obtaining an

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree in July 1976. Donner worked as a civil servant from July 1976 until December 1997, for the department of Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Economic Affairs from August 1976 until March 1981, as a

paralegal A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant or paralegal specialist, is a legal professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with an admission to practice law. The market for p ...

for the office of Juridical Support of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

from March 1981 until November 1984, and for the department of Public Law of the

Ministry of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

from November 1984 until January 1990. In December 1989 Donner was appointed as a member of the Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR), taking office on 1 January 1990. In December 1992 Donner was nominated as director of the WRR, taking office on 1 January 1993. In December 1997 Donner was nominated as a member of the

Council of State A council of state is a governmental body in a country, or a subdivision of a country, with a function that varies by jurisdiction. It may be the formal name for the cabinet or it may refer to a non-executive advisory body associated with a head ...

. He was installed as a Member of the Council of State, taking office on 22 December 1997, resigning as director of the WRR on the same day.

Political career

After the 2002 general election, Donner was appointed '' informateur'' for the cabinet formation. Following the cabinet formation, Donner was appointed as

Minister of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

in the first Balkenende cabinet, taking office on 22 July 2002. The cabinet resigned just four months later on 16 October, and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity. After the succeeding 2003 general election, Donner retained his ministerial post in the second Balkenende cabinet, which took office on 27 May 2003. In 2006, Donner recorded a rap song together with Meester G to explain his point of view on the Dutch soft-drug policy in response to a song by Gerd Leers,

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Maastricht Maastricht ( , , ; ; ; ) is a city and a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital city, capital and largest city of the province of Limburg (Netherlands), Limburg. Maastricht is loca ...

with punk band Heideroosjes, which called for a more progressive policy which would not only regulate the selling of soft drugs, but also legalise their production. The second Balkenende cabinet fell on 30 June 2006 after the Democrats 66 had lost confidence in Minister for Integration and Asylum Affairs Rita Verdonk, and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity until 7 July, when it was replaced by the caretaker third Balkenende cabinet, with Donner remaining Minister of Justice. On 13 September 2006, Donner was the subject of controversy when he suggested Islamic law could be established in the Netherlands by democratic means. He responded by a clarification that he was not advocating such a scenario but warning against it. In the same month, a Dutch Safety Board report into a fire at Schiphol Airport jail was released, condemning Dutch government officials. Donner and Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment Sybilla Dekker, as politically responsible cabinet members, resigned following the report's conclusions. Donner was succeeded by

Ernst Hirsch Ballin Ernst Maurits Henricus Hirsch Ballin (born 15 December 1950) is a retired Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist. After the election of 1989 Hirsch Ballin was appointed as Minister of Justice in the Cab ...

, who had been justice minister in the third Lubbers cabinet. Donner was elected to the

in the 2006 general election, taking office on 30 November 2006. Following the succeeding cabinet formation, Donner was appointed Minister of Social Affairs and Employment in the

fourth Balkenende cabinet The fourth Balkenende cabinet was the Executive (government), executive branch of the Politics of the Netherlands, Government of the Netherlands from 22 February 2007 until 14 October 2010. The Cabinet of the Netherlands, cabinet was formed by ...

, taking office on 22 February 2007. This cabinet resigned on 20 February 2010 after tensions in the coalition over the extension of Dutch involvement in the Task Force Uruzgan mission of the

International Security Assistance Force The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386, Resolution 1386 ac ...

(ISAF) in

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. It is bordered by Pakistan to the Durand Line, east and south, Iran to the Afghanistan–Iran borde ...

, and continued to serve in a demissionary capacity. In March 2010, Donner announced that he would not stand in the election of that year. Following the 2010 cabinet formation, Donner was appointed as Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations in the first Rutte cabinet, taking office on 14 October 2010. In December 2011 Donner was nominated as Vice-President of the Council of State. He resigned as Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations on 16 December 2011 and was installed as Vice-President of the Council of State on 1 February 2012, serving until 1 November 2018. Donner also served as a distinguished professor of

Minority rights Minority rights are the normal individual rights as applied to members of racial, ethnic, class, religious, linguistic or gender and sexual minorities, and also the collective rights accorded to any minority group. Civil-rights movements oft ...

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

, holding the Cleveringa Chair, from 1 September 2015 until 1 September 2016.Donner naar Raad van State
NOS, 16 December 2011

Later activities

Since his retirement, Donner has occupied numerous seats as nonprofit director for supervisory boards in the business and industry world and several international non-governmental organisations and research institutes, including the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy, the Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, the Netherlands Atlantic Association, the Royal Netherlands Historical Society and the Carnegie Foundation. He also served on several state commissions on behalf of the government.

Decorations

References

External links

*
Prof.Mr. J.P.H. (Piet Hein) Donner
Parlement & Politiek {{DEFAULTSORT:Donner, Piet Hein 1948 births Living people Christian Democratic Appeal politicians Directors of the Scientific Council for Government Policy Dutch expatriates in the United States Dutch legal scholars Dutch nonprofit directors Dutch nonprofit executives Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau Humanities academics Academic staff of Leiden University Members of the Council of State (Netherlands) Dutch MPs 2006–2010 Members of the Scientific Council for Government Policy Ministers of kingdom relations of the Netherlands Ministers of justice of the Netherlands Ministers of social affairs of the Netherlands Ministers of state of the Netherlands Ministers of the interior of the Netherlands Politicians from Amsterdam Politicians from The Hague Protestant Church Christians from the Netherlands Reformed Churches Christians from the Netherlands University of Michigan Law School alumni Vice-presidents of the Council of State (Netherlands) Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam alumni 20th-century Dutch civil servants 20th-century Dutch jurists 20th-century Dutch politicians 21st-century Dutch civil servants 21st-century Dutch educators 21st-century Dutch jurists Christian Democratic Appeal MPs