Helge Mølsted Sander (born 27 August 1950) is a Danish politician. He is the former Danish Minister of Science, Technology and Development (

Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation of Denmark Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

) (from 27 November 2001, as member of the

Cabinet of Anders Fogh Rasmussen I After the 2001 Danish parliamentary election, Anders Fogh Rasmussen was able form a government coalition of his own Liberal Party Venstre and the Conservative People's Party. It was a minority government with the parliamentary support of the Da ...

, II and III). He is a member of 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. For example, while the political systems ...

, and was a member of parliament (

Folketinget The Folketing ( , ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral List of legislatures by country, national legislature (parliament) of the Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark — Denmark proper to ...

) from 10 January 1984 to 31 January 1998; and again from 2005.

Education and career

He received his Lower Secondary School Examination degree from Aulum Urban School. Then he trained as a journalist with the newspaper ''Herning Folkeblad'' from 1968 to 1971. He was a journalist with the newspaper ''Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten'' from 1972 to 1973, Head of Arrangements at A/S Exhibition Centre Herning from 1973 to 1977, and then Director of A/S Herning Fremad Football Club from 1978 to 1979. Sander was a member of the Town Council of

Herning Herning () is a Denmark, Danish town in the Central Denmark Region of the Jutland peninsula. It is the main town and the administrative seat of Herning Municipality. Herning has a population of 51,782 (1 January 2025)

from 1974 to 1979, and from 1994 to 2001; during the latter period, he was Deputy Mayor from 1994 to 1998, and Mayor from 1998 to 2001.

Reform controversy

During Sander's time as Minister of Science, he has been behind the implementation of a series of controversial reforms of Danish Universities: Under the heading of "from thought to invoice", Sander has removed faculty and scientific personnel from the decision process and placed institutional power with an external board, having a majority of members appointed by the ministry. Subsequently, a survey of European universities placed Denmark 21 out of 23 European countries with regards to the protection of

academic freedom Academic freedom is the right of a teacher to instruct and the right of a student to learn in an academic setting unhampered by outside interference. It may also include the right of academics to engage in social and political criticism. Academic ...

. DM (Dansk Magisterforening) has submitted a complaint to

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

that this fails to comply with the 1997 UNESCO Recommendation concerning the Status of Higher-Education Teaching Personnel, which the Danish Government has signed. The reforms have resulted in declining efficiency, where the yearly expenses of Danish Universities towards administration have increased by a sum of 700 million DKR, while most researchers report having less time to do research. As of November 2008, close to 50% of Danish researchers have signed a petition asking for improvement in working conditions and the protection of academic freedom. Theoretical biologist and philosopher

Claus Emmeche Claus Emmeche (born 1956) is a Danish people, Danish theoretical biologist and philosopher, one of founders of contemporary biosemiotics. He is associate professor at the University of Copenhagen, and is head of the Center for the Philosophy of Na ...

was one of the organizers of the petition and was surprised with the ease at which the petition gained a large amount of support.Ard Jongsma, "DENMARK: Academics sign up to protest", ''University World News'', No. 0042, 31 Aug. 2008.
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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sander, Helge 1950 births Government ministers of Denmark Living people Mayors of places in Denmark Venstre (Denmark) politicians People from Herning Municipality Members of the Folketing 1984–1987 Members of the Folketing 1987–1988 Members of the Folketing 1988–1990 Members of the Folketing 1990–1994 Members of the Folketing 1994–1998 Members of the Folketing 2005–2007 Members of the Folketing 2007–2011