Mathias Hubert Paul Cormann
(; ; born 20 September 1970) is a Belgian-born Australian politician and diplomat who currently serves as
Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), having assumed the office on 1 June 2021.
Previously, he was
Australian Minister for Finance
A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation.
A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...
from 2013 to 2020 and a
Senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
from
Western Australia
Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to t ...
for the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left.
__TOC__ Active liberal parties
This is a li ...
from 2007 to 2020. His tenure of more than seven years as Minister for Finance was the longest in Australian history, spanning the
Abbott,
Turnbull, and
Morrison Governments. On 20 December 2017,
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...
Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia.
Turnbull grad ...
promoted Cormann to be
Leader of the Government in the Senate.
He also served as
Special Minister of State
The Special Minister of State (SMOS) in the Government of Australia is a position currently held by Don Farrell since 1 June 2022, following the Australian federal election in 2022. The minister is responsible for various parliamentary, elector ...
from 2015 to 2016, 2017 to 2018 and 2019 to 2020, and as
Minister for the Public Service from 2018 to 2019.
As Leader of the Government in the Senate, Cormann was also the
Vice-President of the Executive Council
The Vice-President of the Executive Council is the minister in the Government of Australia who acts as the presiding officer of meetings of the Federal Executive Council when the Governor-General is absent. The Vice-President of the Executiv ...
.
Cormann retired from politics in October 2020 in order to be nominated by Prime Minister
Scott Morrison
Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...
as Australia's candidate for Secretary-General of the OECD.
On 12 March 2021, he was elected as the next OECD Secretary-General, winning support from a majority of OECD Member States. He is the first Australian elected to this position.
Early life
Cormann was born on 20 September 1970 in
Eupen
Eupen (, ; ; formerly ) is the capital of German-speaking Community of Belgium and is a city and municipality in the Belgian province of Liège, from the German border ( Aachen), from the Dutch border ( Maastricht) and from the "High Fen ...
, Belgium, within the country's
German-speaking Community
The German-speaking Community (german: links=no, Deutschsprachige Gemeinschaft, or DG; french: links=no, Communauté germanophone; nl, links=no, Duitstalige Gemeenschap), since 2017 also known as East Belgium (german: links=no, Ostbelgien), is ...
.
He is the oldest of four children and only son born to Hildegard and Herbert Cormann.
Cormann grew up in the village of
Raeren, around from the
Belgian-German border. At the time of his birth, his father worked as a
turner
Turner may refer to:
People and fictional characters
*Turner (surname), a common surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Turner (given name), a list of people with the given name
*One who uses a lathe for turni ...
at a factory in Germany. When he was ten years old, his father spent six months in hospital with a severe illness that left him unable to work; he subsequently became an alcoholic but recovered.
The family relied on a disability pension and assistance from the local Catholic church, where Cormann served as an altar boy
An altar server is a lay assistant to a member of the clergy during a Christian liturgy. An altar server attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying, ringing the altar bell, helps bring up the gifts, brings up the book ...
.
After beginning his education locally, Cormann completed his secondary schooling in Liège
Liège ( , , ; wa, Lîdje ; nl, Luik ; german: Lüttich ) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège.
The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far fro ...
, where he learnt French as a second language.[ He went on to the ]University of Namur
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
, where he attained the degree of candidate
A candidate, or nominee, is the prospective recipient of an award or honor, or a person seeking or being considered for some kind of position; for example:
* to be elected to an office — in this case a candidate selection procedure occurs.
* ...
in law. In 1989, he and some university friends drove to Berlin to witness the Fall of the Berlin Wall
The fall of the Berlin Wall (german: Mauerfall) on 9 November 1989, during the Peaceful Revolution, was a pivotal event in world history which marked the destruction of the Berlin Wall and the figurative Iron Curtain and one of the series of eve ...
. He has cited his experiences of the systems used in East and West Germany as influential in his political development.[ Cormann later undertook law graduate studies at the ]Katholieke Universiteit Leuven
KU Leuven (or Katholieke Universiteit Leuven) is a Catholic research university in the city of Leuven, Belgium. It conducts teaching, research, and services in computer science, engineering, natural sciences, theology, humanities, medicine, ...
, attaining the degree of licentiate and learning Dutch
Dutch commonly refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands
* Dutch people ()
* Dutch language ()
Dutch may also refer to:
Places
* Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States
* Pennsylvania Dutch Country
People E ...
. He learned English as a fourth language in 1993 while on an Erasmus Programme exchange to the University of East Anglia
The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...
in Norwich
Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...
, England.[
]
Early career and move to Australia
Cormann's parents were not politically active.[ He nonetheless joined the German-speaking Christian Social Party (CSP) at a young age and was elected to Raeren's municipal council at the age of 21.][ He later worked in ]Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
as an assistant to Mathieu Grosch
Mathieu Jean Hubert Grosch (born 14 September 1950, in Eupen) is a Belgian politician and Member of the European Parliament for the German-speaking Community of Belgium with the CSP-EVP, Member of the Bureau of the European People's Party and sit ...
, who represented Belgium's German-speaking electoral college
The German-speaking electoral college is one of three constituencies of the European Parliament in Belgium. It elects one MEP and is the only constituency to make use of first past the post.
This is the European Parliament's smallest constitue ...
in the European Parliament
The European Parliament (EP) is one of the Legislature, legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven Institutions of the European Union, institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and in ...
.[ In 1995, he was associated with ]Joëlle Milquet
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet ( ; born 17 February 1961) is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre (CDH).
Education
She studied classics at the in Charleroi, before going on to graduate in law from the Université Catholique de Louv ...
's campaign for the presidency of the French-speaking Christian Social Party (PSC).
During his time studying in England, Cormann began a relationship with an Australian woman. He first came to Australia in June 1994 to visit her family in Perth
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
. Their relationship did not continue, but after returning to Belgium to complete his studies he decided to move to Australia permanently.[ He settled in Perth in July 1996, aged 25, initially working as a gardener at Presbyterian Ladies' College as his Belgian law degrees were not recognised.] Cormann then cold-called Senator Chris Ellison, the chairman of the parliamentary committee on treaties, and asked to work in his office as a volunteer. After two weeks he secured a paid position as a staffer.[
Through Ellison, Cormann began to develop connections in the ]Liberal Party of Australia (Western Australian Division)
The Liberal Party of Australia (Western Australian Division), branded as Liberal Western Australia, is the division of the Liberal Party of Australia in Western Australia. Founded in March 1949 as the Liberal and Country League of Western Aust ...
.[ From 1997 to 2000 he worked as chief of staff to ]Rhonda Parker
Rhonda Kathleen Parker, ''née'' Davey (born 7 September 1954) is a former Australian politician.
She was born in Warragul in Victoria and arrived in Western Australia in 1967. Before entering politics she was a lecturer and a partner in a sma ...
, the state minister for family and children's services. He later worked as senior adviser to Premier Richard Court
Richard Fairfax Court (born 27 September 1947) is a former Australian politician and diplomat. He served as Premier of Western Australia from 1993 to 2001 and as Australian Ambassador to Japan from 2017 to 2020. A member of the Liberal Party, ...
(2000–2001) before returning to work for Ellison after his appointment as federal justice minister. Cormann was elected to the Liberal Party's state council in 2000. He served as a vice-president of the party from 2003 to 2004 and as senior vice-president from 2004 to 2008.
In 2003, Cormann joined HBF as health services manager in its health insurance division. He was general manager of its Healthguard division from 2004 to 2006 before rejoining the health insurance division as acting general manager from 2006 to 2007.
Federal politics
Opposition (2007–2013)
Cormann's preselection
Preselection is the process by which a candidate is selected, usually by a political party, to contest an election for political office. It is also referred to as candidate selection. It is a fundamental function of political parties. The presele ...
for the coveted third position on the Liberal Senate ticket for the 2007 election was all but assured, at the expense of controversial Senator Ross Lightfoot
Philip Ross Lightfoot (born 11 August 1936) is a former Australian politician. He was a Liberal member of the Australian Senate from 1997 to 2008, representing the state of Western Australia.
Early life
Lightfoot was born in Port Lincoln, South ...
, who withdrew from the preselection race and resigned from politics when he realised the numbers were against him. On the ABC's '' Stateline'' program on 27 April 2007, Lightfoot stated that he considered Cormann (although he stopped short of naming him) an "inappropriate person" to replace him. Lightfoot's main complaint was that there were "more appropriate people" to succeed him "who have served the party longer" and "who have been in the country longer".
When Senator Ian Campbell unexpectedly announced his planned resignation on 4 May 2007, Cormann was quickly preselected by the party to fill the resulting casual vacancy.[ Campbell formally resigned on 31 May 2007. Cormann was sworn in on 20 June 2007 and served the remaining four years of Ian Campbell's term until 2011. On 21 August 2010 Cormann was re-elected for a further six-year term as Senator for Western Australia and again on 2 July 2016.]
In Opposition, Cormann served as Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Health Administration (2008–09), Shadow Minister for Employment Participation, Apprenticeships and Training (2009–2010) and as Shadow Assistant Treasurer and Shadow Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation (2010–2013). In the Senate he chaired the Fuel and Energy Select Committee (2008–2010) and the Scrutiny of New Taxes Committee (2010–2011).
Government (2013–2020)
When the Coalition won government in 2013, Cormann became the Finance Minister, a role which he held under Tony Abbott
Anthony John Abbott (; born 4 November 1957) is a former Australian politician who served as the 28th prime minister of Australia from 2013 to 2015. He held office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia.
Abbott was born in Londo ...
, Malcolm Turnbull
Malcolm Bligh Turnbull (born 24 October 1954) is an Australian former politician and businessman who served as the 29th prime minister of Australia from 2015 to 2018. He held office as leader of the Liberal Party of Australia.
Turnbull grad ...
and Scott Morrison
Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...
. Although he publicly supported Abbott in the 2015 leadership spill, Cormann was promoted by Turnbull to take on the additional roles of Special Minister of State in 2016, and Leader of the Government in the Senate in 2017.
As government leader in the upper house, Cormann became third in line to serve as acting prime minister
An acting prime minister is a cabinet member (often in Westminster system countries) who is serving in the role of prime minister, whilst the individual who normally holds the position is unable to do so. The role is often performed by the deput ...
when necessary. He fulfilled this role for several days in February 2018, during a unique set of circumstances in which Prime Minister Turnbull made a state visit to the United States, Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce
Barnaby Thomas Gerard Joyce (born 17 April 1967) is an Australian politician who served as the 17th deputy prime minister of Australia under Malcolm Turnbull from 2016 to 2018 and under Scott Morrison from 2021 to 2022. He was the leader of the ...
took personal leave amid scandal surrounding an affair with a staffer, and Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party Julie Bishop
Julie Isabel Bishop (born 17 July 1956) is an Australian former politician who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2018 and deputy leader of the Liberal Party from 2007 to 2018. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Curti ...
made official visits to Europe in her role as Foreign Minister.
Cormann played a key role during the Liberal Party leadership spills in August 2018. He voted for Turnbull against Peter Dutton
Peter Craig Dutton (born 18 November 1970) is an Australian politician who has been leader of the opposition and leader of the Liberal Party since May 2022. He has represented the Queensland seat of Dickson in the House of Representatives sinc ...
in the first spill on 21 August, and the following day publicly pledged his support for him to remain as prime minister, stating "I will continue to serve him loyally into the future" at a press conference alongside Turnbull and Treasurer Scott Morrison
Scott John Morrison (; born 13 May 1968) is an Australian politician. He served as the 30th prime minister of Australia and as Leader of the Liberal Party of Australia from 2018 to 2022, and is currently the member of parliament (MP) for th ...
. However, on 23 August Cormann issued a joint statement with Mitch Fifield and Michaelia Cash
Michaelia Clare Cash (born 19 July 1970) is an Australian politician who served as the 38th Attorney-General of Australia from 2021 to 2022 in the Morrison Government. She has been a Senator for Western Australia since 2008 and is a member of t ...
withdrawing their support, stating that "we went to see the PM yesterday afternoon to advise him that in our judgement, he no longer enjoyed the majority of support of Liberal members". They also announced that they had offered their resignations from cabinet. In the second spill on 24 August, he supported Peter Dutton against Scott Morrison and Julie Bishop
Julie Isabel Bishop (born 17 July 1956) is an Australian former politician who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2018 and deputy leader of the Liberal Party from 2007 to 2018. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Curti ...
.
During the leadership conflict, Cormann offered his resignation as Minister for Finance and Leader of the Government in the Senate, but resumed both roles in the first Morrison Ministry.
In October 2019, Cormann became the longest-serving Finance Minister, having surpassed the record previously held by Nick Minchin.
In July 2020, Cormann announced that he would step down from politics by the end of the year, but would remain as minister to finalise the government's July budget update, the 2020–21 federal budget in October and the half-yearly budget update in December. In early October 2020, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that Cormann would be nominated as a candidate for the next Secretary-General of the OECD
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; french: Organisation de coopération et de développement économiques, ''OCDE'') is an intergovernmental organisation with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate ...
. On 30 October 2020, he stepped down from his roles as Finance Minister and Leader of the Government in the Senate, which were taken over by Trade Minister Simon Birmingham
Simon John Birmingham (born 14 June 1974) is an Australian politician who has been a Senator for South Australia since 2007. A member of the Liberal Party, he served in the Morrison Government as Minister for Finance from 2020 to 2022 and as Mi ...
.
On 2 November 2020, Cormann was officially nominated as a candidate for the next Secretary-General of the OECD. He formally resigned from the Senate a week later on 6 November 2020, with his resignation triggering a casual vacancy in the Senate. His nomination was supported both by the Liberal government and federal Labor, while the Labor Premier of Western Australia
The premier of Western Australia is the head of government of the state of Western Australia. The role of premier at a state level is similar to the role of the prime minister of Australia at a federal level. The premier leads the executive bra ...
Mark McGowan
Mark McGowan (born 13 July 1967) is an Australian politician, the 30th premier of Western Australia, and the leader of the Western Australian branch of the Labor Party.
McGowan was born and raised in Newcastle, New South Wales. He attended t ...
provided a reference for Cormann's nomination.
Secretary-General of OECD
On 12 March 2021, Cormann was elected as the next Secretary-General of the OECD, and he assumed office on 1 June 2021. On 25 June Cormann welcomed United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken
Antony John Blinken (born April 16, 1962) is an American government official and diplomat serving as the 71st United States secretary of state since January 26, 2021. He previously served as deputy national security advisor from 2013 to 2015 a ...
. Among the issues discussed were "techno-democracy" and COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...
.
Political views
Cormann is a free market economic and fiscal conservative. As a Senator, in Opposition and in Government, he has been a consistent advocate for lower taxes, smaller government, open markets and free trade. Within the Liberal Party he is associated with the economic dries.
While Cormann personally opposed same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...
and in 2017 argued "for a postal vote plebiscite to be held before a parliamentary vote on the issue", after that survey went ahead and found most Australians support same-sex marriage, Cormann chose to vote in favour of the bill legalising same-sex marriage.
Cormann is a constitutional monarchist
Monarchism is the advocacy of the system of monarchy or monarchical rule. A monarchist is an individual who supports this form of government independently of any specific monarch, whereas one who supports a particular monarch is a royalis ...
.
Personal life
Cormann, a Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
, is married to Hayley, a lawyer. They have two daughters.
Cormann became an Australian citizen
Australian nationality law details the conditions in which a person holds Australian legal nationality. The primary law governing nationality regulations is the Australian Citizenship Act 2007, which came into force on 1 July 2007 and is applic ...
on Australia Day
Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port ...
in 2000, which resulted in the automatic loss of his Belgian citizenship
Belgian nationality law provides for the conditions in which a person holds Belgian nationality and is based on a mixture of the principles of ''jus sanguinis'' and '' jus soli''.
Belgian nationality is the status of being a citizen of Belgium. ...
as per Belgian nationality law
Belgian nationality law provides for the conditions in which a person holds Belgian nationality and is based on a mixture of the principles of ''jus sanguinis'' and ''jus soli''.
Belgian nationality is the status of being a citizen of Belgium. N ...
at the time. This was re-confirmed prior to nominating for preselection as a candidate for the Senate.
Cormann obtained a private pilot's licence in 2001.
Honours
In January 2018, Cormann was awarded with the rank of Grand Cross with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...
by Ambassador Anna Prinz on behalf of the Federal President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier for his work "in advancing German-Australian relations".
Criticisms
During his candidacy for the position of Secretary General of the OECD, Cormann has been criticised over his record on climate change, specifically for trying to abolish Australia's Clean Energy Finance Corporation as well as Australia's renewable energy target, as well as trying to abolish Australia's Renewable Energy Agency. In March 2021, 29 Australian and global humanitarian and environmental organisations wrote to the OECD, citing "grave concerns" and asking that Cormann be disqualified due to his record of "thwarting effective climate action".
Cormann has also been criticised by trade union leaders in Australia and the UK.
References
External links
OECD official biography
Mathias Cormann's personal website
*
*
Summary of Mathias Cormann's Australian parliamentary voting record
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Cormann, Mathias
1970 births
Living people
OECD officials
Abbott Government
Alumni of the University of East Anglia
Belgian emigrants to Australia
Belgian expatriates in England
Australian expatriates in England
People who lost Belgian citizenship
Naturalised citizens of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia
Members of the Australian Senate
Members of the Australian Senate for Western Australia
People from Eupen
Belgian Roman Catholics
Australian Roman Catholics
Members of the Cabinet of Australia
KU Leuven alumni
Government ministers of Australia
Université de Namur alumni
Australian monarchists
Turnbull Government
21st-century Australian politicians
Grand Crosses with Star and Sash of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Morrison Government
Alumni of the Erasmus Programme