Per Westerberg
Encyclopedia
Per Erik Gunnar Westerberg (born 2 August 1951) is a Swedish
Moderate Party
politician and as of 2006 the current Speaker
of the Swedish Riksdag, of which he is a member since 1979, and thus also its most senior member (see Father of the House
).
Westerberg was born in Nyköping
and graduated from Stockholm School of Economics
in 1974. His family has been running a family business for generations and he is now the richest member of the Riksdag
, with a personal wealth exceeding 200 million SEK
, (around $30 million 2006). His brother, Lars Westerberg
, was CEO of Autoliv
.
Per Westerberg has been active within Moderate politics since the election campaign in 1966, when he joined the Moderate Youth League
. In 1979, he was elected to the Riksdag for his home county of Södermanland
; he is currently the longest-serving member of the Riksdag. During the Moderate-led government 1991-1994, Westerberg served as Minister for Industry and Trade.
In 2003 he was elected as first of the three Vice Speakers of the Riksdag, and on October 2, 2006 he was elected Speaker of the Riksdag by the new liberal-conservative majority.
On October 4, 2010 he was dramatically re-elected as Speaker of the Riksdag, by a 194-153 vote (with 20 votes in favor being from the Sweden Democrats
, whose potential decisiveness to his re-election had been viewed as controversial).
Per Westerberg and his family continue to make their home in Nyköping and he continues to serve on the Board of the Moderate Party and as chairman of the Moderate Party in Södermanland.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Moderate Party
Moderate Party
The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
politician and as of 2006 the current Speaker
Speaker of the Riksdag
The Speaker of the Parliament of Sweden is the speaker of the national parliament in Sweden. The Riksdag underwent changes in 1867, when the old Riksdag of the Estates institution was abolished. The new form of the Riksdag included two chambers, each with its own Speaker...
of the Swedish Riksdag, of which he is a member since 1979, and thus also its most senior member (see Father of the House
Father of the House
Father of the House is a term that has by tradition been unofficially bestowed on certain members of some national legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the term refers to the oldest member, but in others it refers the longest-serving member.The...
).
Westerberg was born in Nyköping
Nyköping
Nyköping is a locality and the seat of Nyköping Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 32,427 inhabitants in 2005. The city is also the capital of Södermanland County.- History :...
and graduated from Stockholm School of Economics
Stockholm School of Economics
The Stockholm School of Economics or Handelshögskolan i Stockholm is one of Northern Europe's leading business schools. Its Masters in Management program is ranked no. 2 in Northern Europe and no. 13 in Europe by the Financial Times...
in 1974. His family has been running a family business for generations and he is now the richest member of the Riksdag
Parliament of Sweden
The Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
, with a personal wealth exceeding 200 million SEK
Swedish krona
The krona has been the currency of Sweden since 1873. Both the ISO code "SEK" and currency sign "kr" are in common use; the former precedes or follows the value, the latter usually follows it, but especially in the past, it sometimes preceded the value...
, (around $30 million 2006). His brother, Lars Westerberg
Lars Westerberg
Lars Erik Westerberg was the CEO and President of the Swedish automotive safety company Autoliv. He is now the chairman of the board....
, was CEO of Autoliv
Autoliv
Autoliv is a Swedish-American company with headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, that in 1997 sprung from the merger of the Swedish company Autoliv AB and Morton Automotive Safety Products, Inc., a division of the American firm Morton International....
.
Per Westerberg has been active within Moderate politics since the election campaign in 1966, when he joined the Moderate Youth League
Moderate Youth League
The Moderate Youth League , officially known in English as the Swedish Young Conservatives, is the youth wing of the Swedish Moderate Party. It had 12 051 members in 2010...
. In 1979, he was elected to the Riksdag for his home county of Södermanland
Södermanland
', sometimes referred to under its Latin form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province or landskap on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea.In Swedish, the province name is...
; he is currently the longest-serving member of the Riksdag. During the Moderate-led government 1991-1994, Westerberg served as Minister for Industry and Trade.
In 2003 he was elected as first of the three Vice Speakers of the Riksdag, and on October 2, 2006 he was elected Speaker of the Riksdag by the new liberal-conservative majority.
On October 4, 2010 he was dramatically re-elected as Speaker of the Riksdag, by a 194-153 vote (with 20 votes in favor being from the Sweden Democrats
Sweden Democrats
The Sweden Democrats is a political party in Sweden, founded in 1988. SD describes itself as a nationalist movement although others use the term far-right. Since 2005, its party chairman is Jimmie Åkesson, while Björn Söder is the party secretary and parliamentary group leader. An Anemone...
, whose potential decisiveness to his re-election had been viewed as controversial).
Per Westerberg and his family continue to make their home in Nyköping and he continues to serve on the Board of the Moderate Party and as chairman of the Moderate Party in Södermanland.
External links
- Per Westerberg on the Moderate PartyModerate PartyThe Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
website - Per Westerberg on the RiksdagParliament of SwedenThe Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
website