Jacques Delors

Jacques Delors (Jacques Lucien Jean Delors) 1925-, French economist and politician and European statesman, president (1985-95) of the European Commission. Beginning in the 1940s, he held a series of posts in French banking and state planning, eventually becoming (1969) an adviser to Gaullist Prime Minister Jacques Chaban-Delmas. In 1974 he joined the French Socialist party, and from 1979 to 1981 he served in the European Parliament. Under President François Mitterrand , Delors served as economics and finance minister (1981-83) and economics, finance, and budget minister (1983-84), helping to revive the French economy. In 1985 he became president of the European Commission, the executive body of the European Community (EC; now the European Union [EU]). With British commissioner Lord Cockfield, he crafted and won approval of the Single European Act (1986), which laid the groundwork for the creation of a single EC market in 1993. Delors also oversaw the transformation of the EC into the EU, which moved the EC nations toward a single currency and greater cooperation on defense.

Delors, Jacques (b. 20 July 1925). President of the EC Commission 1985–94 Following a university degree in economics he worked for the Bank of France 1945–61, as well as being active in the Christian trade-union movement. He joined the French Socialist Party in 1974 and became Mitterrand's spokesperson for economic affairs. Following the latter's election victory in 1981, he became his powerful minister of economics and finance. Under his presidency of the European Commission the EC changed beyond recognition. He was the architect of major structural reforms which entailed an overhaul of the EC's finances and agricultural policies, as well as the introduction of qualified majority voting. Moreover, encouraged by Kohl and Mitterrand he was a passionate supporter of further European integration, which he promoted effectively and successfully through the Single European Act and the Maastricht Treaty. He enjoyed considerable popularity in continental Europe, and was widely tipped to become a candidate in the French presidential elections of 1995, as polls indicated that he stood by far the best chance of winning. However, he decided to retire and has since been active promoting the ideals of the Maastricht Treaty.