Ministry of Business (Denmark)

The Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs (Danish: Erhvervsministeriet, lit. 'Ministry of Business') is a Danish ministry focused on business policy and economic growth.^[1] As of 2022, Morten Bødskov is its minister.^[2]

Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs

Ministry overview
Formed	12 October 1908; 117 years ago (1908-10-12)
Jurisdiction	Government of Denmark
Headquarters	10-12 Slotsholmsgade, Copenhagen, Denmark
Minister responsible	Morten Bødskov, Minister of Business
Ministry executive	Michael Dithmer, Permanent Secretary
Child agencies	Danish Business Authority Danish Financial Supervisory Authority Danish Competition and Consumer Authority Danish Appeals Boards Authority Danish Patent and Trademark Office Danish Safety Technology Authority Danish Maritime Authority
Website	https://eng.em.dk/

Within the Danish government, the ministry serving this function and occupying this position has changed names several times. Its current name was officially instated by Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen in 2016.^[3]

History

The Ministry of Commerce (Danish: Handelsministeriet) was first established in 1848 with the first cabinet of Denmark which effectively ended the nation's absolute monarchy.^[4] Christian Albrecht Bluhme served as the first minister of commerce from 22 March until 15 November, when the office was abolished within the second cabinet of Denmark.^[5]

A ministry of trade was not reestablished until 12 October 1908, when the Ministry of Commerce and Seafare (Danish: Ministeriet for Handel og Søfart) was formed. During this period, the ministry oversaw areas of trade and international shipping.^[6] In 1979, its name was changed to the Ministry of Industry (Danish: Industriministeriet).^[7] The ministry was briefly known as the Ministry of Industry and Business Co-ordination (Danish: Industri- og Samordningsministeriet) during the 1990s, before being renamed as the Ministry of Business in 1994.

In 2001, the ministry was merged with the Ministry of the Economy (Danish: Økonomiministeriet) and jointly became known as the Ministry of the Economy and Business (Danish: Økonomi- og Erhvervsministeriet).^[3] In 2011, the economic branch of the ministry was again split off as part of the independent Ministry of the Economy and Interior (Danish: Økonomi- og Indenrigsministeriet), and the trade ministry was reformed as the Ministry of Business and Growth (Danish: Erhvervs- og Vækstministeriet).^[3][8] In November of 2016, Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen again renamed the ministry.^[3] Today, it is known as the Ministry of Business (Danish: Erhvervesministeriet), though in English it is officially referred to as the Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs.

Organisation

The Ministry's headquarters at 10–12 Slotsholmsgade in Copenhagen.

The ministry is led by the Minister of Business, as well as the head of the department and the Permanent Secretary. As of 2023, the Ministry of Business oversees seven agencies as well as several state-owned enterprises, including The Danish Growth Fund and VisitDenmark. Its corresponding agencies are:^[9]

• Danish Business Authority (Erhvervsstyrelsen)
• Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finanstilsynet)
• Danish Competition and Consumer Authority (Konkurrence- og Forbrugerstyrelsen)
• Danish Appeals Boards Authority (Nævnenes Hus)
• Danish Patent and Trademark Office (Patent- og Varemærkestyrelsen)
• Danish Safety Technology Authority (Sikkerhedsstyrelsen)
• Danish Maritime Authority (Søfartsstyrelsen)

List of ministers

No.	Portrait	Name (born–died)	Term of office			Political party		Government	Ref.
			Took office	Left office	Time in office
Minister for Commerce (Handelsminister)
1		Christian Albrecht Bluhme (1794–1866)	22 March 1848	15 November 1848	238 days		Højre	Moltke I Cabinet
Minister for Commerce and Seafare (Minister for Handel og Søfart)
2		Johan Hansen [da] (1861–1943)	12 October 1908	28 October 1909	1 year, 16 days		Venstre Reform	Neergaard I Cabinet Holstein-Ledreborg Cabinet
3		Wilhelm Weimann [da] (1868–1942)	28 October 1909	5 July 1910	250 days		Social Liberals	Zahle I Cabinet
4		Oscar B. Muus [da] (1847–1918)	5 July 1910	21 June 1913	2 years, 351 days		Venstre	Berntsen Cabinet
–		Jens Hassing-Jørgensen [da] (1872–1952) Acting	21 June 1913	28 April 1914	311 days		Social Liberals	Zahle II Cabinet
5		Christopher Hage [da] (1848–1930)	28 April 1914	30 March 1920	5 years, 337 days		Social Liberals	Zahle II Cabinet
Minister for Commerce (Minister for Handel)
6		Magnus Suenson [da] (1875–1955)	30 March 1920	5 April 1920	6 days		Independent	Liebe Cabinet
7		Hans Peter Prior (1866–1936)	5 April 1920	5 May 1920	30 days		Independent	Friis Cabinet
8		Tyge J. Rothe [da] (1877–1970)	5 May 1920	9 October 1922	2 years, 157 days		Venstre	Neergaard II Cabinet
–		Oluf Krag [da] (1870–1942) Acting	9 October 1922	10 October 1922	1 day		Venstre	Neergaard III Cabinet
9		Jørgen Christensen [da] (1871–1937)	10 October 1922	23 April 1924	1 year, 196 days		Venstre	Neergaard III Cabinet
Minister for Industry, Commerce and Seafare (Minister for industri handel og søfart)
10		Thorvald Stauning (1873–1942)	23 April 1924	14 December 1926	2 years, 235 days		Social Democrats	Stauning I Cabinet
11		Marius Slebsager [da] (1874–1962)	14 December 1926	3 October 1928	1 year, 294 days		Venstre	Madsen-Mygdal Cabinet
–		Thomas Madsen-Mygdal (1876–1943) Acting	3 October 1928	6 October 1928	3 days		Venstre	Madsen-Mygdal Cabinet
–		Johannes Stensballe [da] (1874–1956) Acting	6 October 1928	30 April 1929	206 days		Venstre	Madsen-Mygdal Cabinet
12		Christen Nielsen Hauge [da] (1870–1940)	30 April 1929	4 November 1935	6 years, 188 days		Social Democrats	Stauning II Cabinet
13		Johannes Kjærbøl (1885–1973)	4 November 1935	8 July 1940	4 years, 247 days		Social Democrats	Stauning III Cabinet–IV–V
14		John Christmas Møller (1894–1948)	8 July 1940	3 October 1940	87 days		Conservatives	Stauning V Cabinet
15		Halfdan Hendriksen [da] (1881–1962)	3 October 1940	5 May 1945	4 years, 214 days		Conservatives	Stauning VI Cabinet Buhl I Cabinet Scavenius Cabinet
16		Vilhelm Fibiger [da] (1886–1978)	5 May 1945	7 November 1945	186 days		Conservatives	Buhl II Cabinet
17		Jens Villemoes [da] (1880–1956)	7 November 1945	6 September 1947	1 year, 303 days		Venstre	Kristensen Cabinet
18		Axel Kristensen [da] (1895–1971)	6 September 1947	13 November 1947	68 days		Venstre	Kristensen Cabinet
19		Jens Otto Krag (1914–1978)	13 November 1947	16 September 1950	2 years, 307 days		Social Democrats	Hedtoft I Cabinet
20		Hans Christian Hansen (1906–1960)	16 September 1950	30 October 1950	44 days		Social Democrats	Hedtoft II Cabinet
21		Ove Weikop [da] (1897–1986)	30 October 1950	13 September 1951	318 days		Conservatives	Eriksen Cabinet
22		Aage L. Rytter [da] (1900–1961)	13 September 1951	30 September 1953	2 years, 17 days		Conservatives	Eriksen Cabinet
23		Lis Groes (1910–1974)	30 September 1953	28 May 1957	3 years, 240 days		Social Democrats	Hedtoft III Cabinet Hansen I Cabinet
Minister of Commerce (Handelsminister)
24		Kjeld Philip (1912–1989)	28 May 1957	31 March 1960	2 years, 308 days		Social Liberals	Hansen II Cabinet Kampmann I Cabinet
25		Lars P. Jensen [da] (1909–1986)	31 March 1960	7 September 1961	1 year, 160 days		Social Democrats	Kampmann I Cabinet–II
27		Hilmar Baunsgaard (1920–1989)	7 September 1961	26 September 1964	3 years, 19 days		Social Liberals	Kampmann II Cabinet Krag I Cabinet
(25)		Lars P. Jensen [da] (1909–1986)	21 September 1966	1 October 1967	1 year, 10 days		Social Democrats	Krag II Cabinet
28		Ove Hansen [da] (1909–1997)	1 October 1967	2 February 1968	124 days		Social Democrats	Krag II Cabinet
29		Knud Thomsen [da] (1908–1996)	2 February 1968	11 October 1971	3 years, 251 days		Conservatives	Baunsgaard Cabinet
30		Erling Jensen [da] (1919–2000)	11 October 1971	6 December 1973	2 years, 56 days		Social Democrats	Krag III Cabinet Jørgensen I Cabinet
31		Poul Nyboe Andersen [da] (1913–2004)	6 December 1973	29 January 1975	1 year, 54 days		Venstre	Hartling Cabinet
(30)		Erling Jensen [da] (1919–2000)	29 January 1975	8 September 1976	1 year, 223 days		Social Democrats	Jørgensen II Cabinet
32		Per Hækkerup (1915–1979)	8 September 1976	26 February 1977	171 days		Social Democrats	Jørgensen II Cabinet
33		Ivar Nørgaard (1922–2011)	26 February 1977	30 August 1978	1 year, 185 days		Social Democrats	Jørgensen II Cabinet
34		Arne Christiansen [da] (1925–2007)	26 February 1977	30 August 1978	1 year, 185 days		Venstre	Jørgensen III Cabinet
Minister of Industry (Industriminister)
35		Ib Stetter [da] (1917–1997)	30 August 1978	12 March 1986	7 years, 194 days		Conservatives	Schlüter I Cabinet
36		Nils Wilhjelm [da] (1936–2018)	12 March 1986	2 December 1989	3 years, 265 days		Conservatives	Schlüter I Cabinet–II
37		Anne Birgitte Lundholt (born 1952)	2 December 1989	25 January 1993	3 years, 54 days		Conservatives	Schlüter III Cabinet–IV
38		Jan Trøjborg (1955–2012)	25 January 1993	28 January 1994	1 year, 3 days		Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
39		Mimi Jakobsen (born 1948)	28 January 1994	8 February 1994	11 days		Centre Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
Minister for Industry and Business Coordination (Industri- og samordningsminister)
(39)		Mimi Jakobsen (born 1948)	8 February 1994	27 September 1994	231 days		Centre Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
Minister of Business Affairs (Erhvervsminister)
(39)		Mimi Jakobsen (born 1948)	27 September 1994	30 December 1996	9 years, 120 days		Centre Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen II Cabinet
(38)		Jan Trøjborg (1955–2012)	28 January 1994	23 March 1998	4 years, 54 days		Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen III Cabinet
40		Pia Gjellerup (born 1959)	23 March 1998	29 December 2000	2 years, 281 days		Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen IV Cabinet
41		Ole Stavad (born 1949)	21 December 2000	27 November 2001	333 days		Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen IV Cabinet
Minister of Economic and Business Affairs (Økonomi- og Erhvervsminister)
42		Bendt Bendtsen (born 1954)	27 November 2001	10 September 2008	6 years, 288 days		Conservatives	Anders Fogh Rasmussen I Cabinet–II–III
Minister of Business Affairs and Growth (Erhvervs- og Vækstminister)
43		Lene Espersen (born 1965)	10 September 2008	23 February 2010	1 year, 166 days		Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen I Cabinet
44		Brian Mikkelsen (born 1966)	23 February 2010	3 October 2011	1 year, 222 days		Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen I Cabinet
45		Ole Sohn (born 1954)	3 October 2011	16 October 2012	1 year, 13 days		SF	Thorning-Schmidt I Cabinet
46		Annette Vilhelmsen (born 1959)	16 October 2012	9 August 2013	297 days		SF	Thorning-Schmidt I Cabinet
47		Henrik Sass Larsen (born 1966)	9 August 2013	28 June 2015	1 year, 323 days		Social Democrats	Thorning-Schmidt I Cabinet–II
48		Troels Lund Poulsen (born 1976)	28 June 2015	28 November 2016	1 year, 153 days		Venstre	Lars Løkke Rasmussen II Cabinet
Minister of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs (Erhvervsminister)
(44)		Brian Mikkelsen (born 1966)	28 November 2016	20 June 2018	1 year, 204 days		Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen III Cabinet
49		Rasmus Jarlov (born 1977)	20 June 2018	27 June 2019	1 year, 7 days		Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen III Cabinet
50		Simon Kollerup (born 1986)	27 June 2019	15 December 2022	3 years, 171 days		Social Democrats	Frederiksen I Cabinet
51		Morten Bødskov (born 1970)	15 December 2022	Incumbent	2 years, 328 days		Social Democrats	Frederiksen II Cabinet