Lawrence Gonzi

Lawrence Gonzi (2011)

Lawrence Gonzi (born July 1, 1953 in Valletta ) is a Maltese politician. He was Prime Minister of Malta from 2004 to 2013 .

Life

After studying law and obtaining a doctorate in law, he worked as a lawyer from 1975 to 1988. From 1989 to 1997 he was chairman of the Mizzi organization , a cross-sector company that is one of the largest employers in Malta with more than 1,000 employees. During this time he was also active in various voluntary areas, including the Catholic movement in Malta.

As a member of the Conservative Nationalist Party (PN), he was Speaker of the House of Representatives for two legislative terms from 1988 to 1996 . In 1997 he was appointed Secretary General of the PN. After the new elections in September 1998, he was given the post of Minister of Social Affairs. After Guido de Marcos was appointed president in 1999, Gonzi became deputy prime minister and deputy chief of the PN.

After the resignation of the previous prime minister and party leader Edward Fenech Adami in February 2004, the PN elected him as the new party leader. He was sworn in as Prime Minister of Malta on March 23.

As Minister of Social Affairs, Lawrence Gonzi implemented a zero-tolerance policy against abuse of social benefits and changes in labor law . As Prime Minister, he supported Malta's membership of the EU , which his predecessor Adami had aspired to.

In March 2013 he lost the parliamentary elections to the social democratic challenger Joseph Muscat .

Lawrence Gonzi is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice (CAPP) Foundation .

Family relationships

He is a nephew of the former Archbishop of Malta Michael Gonzi (1885-1984), his younger brother is the MP Michael Gonzi (* 1960).

Web links

Commons : Lawrence Gonzi  - Collection of Images, Videos and Audio Files

Individual evidence

1. ^ Faz.net: Change of government in Malta, new head of government Muscat sworn in
2. ^ Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice: Organization , accessed October 19, 2015