Jean-Pierre Soisson

Jean-Pierre Soisson (born November 9 1934) is a French politician of the Union for a Popular Movement who is a deputy in the National Assembly of France for the first district of Yonne. [http://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/13/tribun/fiches_id/2744.asp CV at National Assembly website] fr.]

Soisson was born in Auxerre. He was first elected to the National Assembly in the June 1968 parliamentary election and has been re-elected in every election since. He first entered the government when he became Secretary of State for Universities on May 27 1974, serving in that position until January 12 1976. He was Secretary of State near the Prime Minister, in charge of Vocational Training, from the latter date until August 25 1976 and then Secretary of State near the Minister for Quality of Life, in charge of Youth and Sports, until March 29 1977. He was Minister of Youth, Sports and Leisure from April 5 1978 to May 13 1981.

He returned to the government seven years later, becoming Minister of Labor, Employment and Vocational Training on June 29 1988, in which position he served for three years before becoming Minister of State, Minister of the Civil Service and Administrative Modernization on May 17 1991. He remained in that position until March 29 1992. Later in that year he became Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development on October 2, serving until March 29 1993.

Soisson was Mayor of Auxerre from March 14 1971 to April 5 1998. He was also Vice-President of the General Council of Yonne from January 1 1983 to June 27 1988, then Vice-President of the Regional Council of Bourgogne from the latter date until becoming President in March 1992, in which position he served until April 17 1993. He was again President of the Regional Council of Bourgogne from March 16 1998 to March 28 2004, and he remains a member of the Regional Council.

However, his alliance with the National Front between 1998 and 2004 in order to keep his seat in the Regional Council of Bourgogne tarred his career, and owed him to be excluded from the Union for French Democracy (UDF), along with Charles Baur, Jacques Blanc, Charles Millon and Bernard Harang [ [http://www.lefigaro.fr/presidentielle-photos/20061123.WWW000000340_ces_politiques_exclus_de_leurs_partis.html Ces politiques débarqués de leurs partis] , "Le Figaro", 23 November 2006 fr icon] [ [http://www.humanite.fr/2006-11-28_Politique_UMP-FN-et-connivences UMP, FN et connivences] , "L'Humanité", 28 November 2006 fr icon] . Soisson was finally beaten in 2004 by François Patriat.

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