Ministry of Social Affairs (Denmark)

The Ministry of Social Affairs (Danish: Socialministeriet) is a Danish cabinet ministry responsible for policies related to the social welfare of the inhabitants of Denmark. As of 2025, it is responsible for the following policy areas: disability law, family law, public housing, social exclusion, social vulnerability, and the voluntary sector.^[1]

Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing

Headquarters of the ministry on Holmens Kanal
Agency overview
Formed	23 April 1924 (1924-04-23)
Jurisdiction	Government of Denmark
Headquarters	22 Holmens Kanal, Copenhagen
Agency executive	Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, Minister
Child agency	Council for Ethnic Minorities
Website	https://www.sm.dk

A ministry of social affairs was first established in Denmark in 1924. It has been re-organized, re-established, and renamed several times since. The ministry was established under its current name, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing (Danish: Social- og Boligministeriet), in 2024. The current minister is Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil.^[2]

History

The Ministry of Social Affairs was first established in 1924, under the first government led by the Social Democrats, Thorvald Stauning's first cabinet. The ministry overtook responsibility for social affairs, international social policy, child welfare, and mental health services—roles which previously fell within the purview of the Ministry of the Interior, the Ministry of Justice, and the Ministry of Education.^[3]

The ministry was abolished in 1926 when Stauning's cabinet was succeeded by the Venstre Party. When Stauning came back to power in 1929, the ministry was re-estabilished. In 1940, the responsibility for labor law was separated from the ministry, forming the Ministry of Labor. Between 1945–1947 and 1950–1953 the two ministries were merged.^[3]

In 2007, the ministry was replaced by the Ministry of Welfare (Danish: Velfærdsministeriet) and the Ministry of Health and Prevention. The Ministry of Social Affairs was re-estabilished in February 2010, taking over the roles of the Ministry of Welfare.^[4] This included the supervision of the Sikringsstyrelsen, a directorate which worked to secure citizens' social rights, including in the form of international pension and social security, across national borders.

With the formation of Helle Thorning-Schmidt's first cabinet in October 2011, the ministry was renamed the Ministry of Social Affairs and Integration, and took over responsibility for integration policy from the Ministry of Refugees, Immigrants and Integration (Danish: Ministeriet for Flygtninge, Indvandrere og Integration). The name of the ministry again changed in 2013 to the Ministry of Social Affairs, Children and Integration when it overtook responsibility for child welfare from the Ministry of Education. In 2014, its name was changed to the Ministry of Children, Equality, Integration and Social Affairs and in 2015 it was renamed the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Interior.^[3][5]

In 2016, the ministry was briefly reformed as the Ministry of Children and Social Affairs before returning to be the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Interior in 2019.^[5] In 2021 the ministry was renamed as the Ministry of Social Affairs and Elderly Affairs.^[6] In 2022, the ministry merged with the Ministry for Housing to form the Ministry of Social Affairs, Housing, and Elderly Affairs. In 2024, an independent Ministry of Elderly Affairs was formed and separated from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Housing.^[2]

List of ministers

No.	Portrait	Name (Born-Died)	Term			Political Party	Government
			Took office	Left office	Duration
Minister for Social Affairs (Socialminister)
1		Jens Jensen (1859–1928)	5 April 1920	5 May 1920	30 days	Social Democrats	Friis Cabinet
2		Frederik Borgbjerg (1866–1936)	23 April 1924	14 December 1926	2 years, 235 days	Social Democrats	Stauning I Cabinet
3		Steincke, Karl KristianKarl Kristian Steincke (1880–1962)	30 April 1929	5 November 1935	6 years, 189 days	Social Democrats	Stauning II Cabinet
4		Ludvig Christensen [da] (1878–1956)	5 November 1935	8 July 1940	4 years, 246 days	Social Democrats	Stauning III Cabinet–IV–V
5		Johannes Kjærbøl (1885–1973)	8 July 1940	9 November 1942	2 years, 124 days	Social Democrats	Stauning VI Cabinet Buhl I Cabinet
6		Laurits Hansen (1894–1965)	9 November 1942	5 May 1945	2 years, 177 days	Social Democrats	Scavenius Cabinet
7		Hans Hedtoft (1903–1955)	5 May 1945	7 November 1945	186 days	Social Democrats	Buhl II Cabinet
8		Søren Peter Larsen [da] (1888–1948)	7 November 1945	24 April 1947	1 year, 168 days	Venstre	Kristensen Cabinet
9		Jens Sønderup (1894–1978)	24 April 1947	13 November 1947	203 days	Venstre	Kristensen Cabinet
10		Johan Strøm [da] (1898–1958)	13 November 1947	30 October 1950	2 years, 351 days	Social Democrats	Hedtoft I Cabinet
11		Poul Sørensen (1904–1969)	30 October 1950	30 September 1953	2 years, 335 days	Conservatives	Eriksen Cabinet
(10)		Johan Strøm [da] (1898–1958)	30 September 1953	28 May 1957	3 years, 240 days	Social Democrats	Hedtoft II Cabinet Hansen I Cabinet
12		Julius Bomholt (1896–1969)	28 May 1957	7 September 1961	4 years, 102 days	Social Democrats	Hansen II Cabinet Kampmann I Cabinet–II
13		Kaj Bundvad [da] (1904–1976)	7 September 1961	2 February 1968	6 years, 148 days	Social Democrats	Kampmann II Cabinet Krag I Cabinet–II
14		Nathalie Lind (1918–1999)	2 February 1968	11 October 1971	3 years, 251 days	Venstre	Baunsgaard Cabinet
15		Eva Gredal (1927–1995)	11 October 1971	19 December 1973	2 years, 69 days	Social Democrats	Krag III Cabinet Jørgensen I Cabinet
16		Jacob Sørensen [da] (1915–1990)	19 December 1973	13 February 1975	1 year, 56 days	Venstre	Hartling Cabinet
(15)		Eva Gredal (1927–1995)	13 February 1975	30 August 1978	3 years, 198 days	Social Democrats	Jørgensen II Cabinet
17		Erling Jensen [da] (1919–2000)	30 August 1978	26 October 1979	1 year, 57 days	Social Democrats	Jørgensen III Cabinet
18		Ritt Bjerregaard (1941–2023)	26 October 1979	30 December 1981	2 years, 65 days	Social Democrats	Jørgensen IV Cabinet
19		Bent Hansen [da] (1931–2000)	30 December 1981	27 April 1982	118 days	Social Democrats	Jørgensen V Cabinet
20		Bent Rold Andersen [da] (1929–2015)	27 April 1982	10 September 1982	136 days	Social Democrats	Jørgensen V Cabinet
21		Palle Simonsen [da] (1933–2014)	10 September 1982	23 July 1984	1 year, 317 days	Conservatives	Schlüter I Cabinet
22		Elsebeth Kock-Petersen (born 1949)	23 July 1984	12 March 1986	1 year, 232 days	Venstre	Schlüter I Cabinet
23		Mimi Jakobsen (born 1948)	12 March 1986	3 June 1988	2 years, 83 days	Centre Democrats	Schlüter I Cabinet–II
24		Aase Olesen (1934–2013)	3 June 1988	18 December 1990	2 years, 198 days	Social Liberals	Schlüter III Cabinet
25		Else Winther Andersen (born 1941)	18 December 1990	25 January 1993	2 years, 38 days	Venstre	Schlüter IV Cabinet
26		Karen Jespersen (born 1947)	25 January 1993	28 January 1994	1 year, 3 days	Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
27		Bente Juncker [da] (born 1944)	28 January 1994	11 February 1994	14 days	Centre Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
28		Yvonne Herløv Andersen (born 1942)	11 February 1994	27 September 1994	228 days	Centre Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I Cabinet
(26)		Karen Jespersen (born 1947)	27 September 1994	23 February 2000	5 years, 149 days	Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen II Cabinet–III–IV
29		Henrik Dam Kristensen (born 1957)	23 February 2000	27 November 2001	1 year, 277 days	Social Democrats	Poul Nyrup Rasmussen IV Cabinet
30		Henriette Kjær (born 1966)	27 November 2001	2 August 2004	2 years, 249 days	Conservatives	Anders Fogh Rasmussen I Cabinet
31		Eva Kjer Hansen (born 1964)	2 August 2004	12 September 2007	3 years, 41 days	Venstre	Anders Fogh Rasmussen I Cabinet–II
(26)		Karen Jespersen (born 1947)	12 September 2007	23 November 2007	72 days	Venstre	Anders Fogh Rasmussen II Cabinet
Office abolished (23 November 2007 – 7 April 2009)
Minister for the Interior and Social Affairs (Indenrigs- og socialminister)
32		Karen Ellemann (born 1969)	7 April 2009	23 February 2010	322 days	Venstre	Lars Løkke Rasmussen I Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs (Socialminister)
33		Benedikte Kiær (born 1969)	23 February 2010	3 October 2011	1 year, 222 days	Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen I Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs and Integration (Social- og integrationsminister)
34		Karen Hækkerup (born 1974)	3 October 2011	9 August 2013	1 year, 310 days	Social Democrats	Thorning-Schmidt I Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs, Children and Integration (Social-, børne- og integrationsminister)
35		Annette Vilhelmsen (born 1959)	9 August 2013	3 February 2014	178 days	SF	Thorning-Schmidt I Cabinet
Minister for Children, Gender Equality, Integration and Social Affairs (Minister for Børn, Ligestilling, Integration og Sociale forhold)
36		Manu Sareen (born 1967)	3 October 2011	28 June 2015	3 years, 268 days	Social Liberals	Thorning-Schmidt II Cabinet
Minister for the Interior and Social Affairs (Indenrigs- og socialminister)
(32)		Karen Ellemann (born 1969)	28 June 2015	28 November 2016	1 year, 153 days	Venstre	Lars Løkke Rasmussen II Cabinet
Minister for Children and Social Affairs (Børne- og socialminister)
37		Mai Mercado (born 1980)	28 November 2016	27 June 2019	2 years, 211 days	Conservatives	Lars Løkke Rasmussen III Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs and the Interior (Social- og indenrigsminister)
38		Astrid Krag (born 1982)	27 June 2019	21 January 2021	1 year, 208 days	Social Democrats	Frederiksen I Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs and Elderly Affairs (Social- og Ældreminister)
(38)		Astrid Krag (born 1982)	21 January 2021	15 December 2022	1 year, 328 days	Social Democrats	Frederiksen I Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs, Housing, and Elderly Affairs (Social-, Bolig- og Ældreminister)
39		Pernille Rosenkrantz-Theil (born 1977)	15 December 2022	29 August 2024	1 year, 258 days	Social Democrats	Frederiksen II Cabinet
Minister for Social Affairs and Housing (Social- og boligminister)
40		Sophie Hæstorp Andersen (born 1974)	29 August 2024	Incumbent	−20 years, 27 days	Social Democrats	Frederiksen II Cabinet