13 Facts About Klaus Welle

Klaus Welle was born on 3 July 1964 and is a German politician who served as Secretary General of the European Parliament between 15 March 2009 to 31 December 2022.

Klaus Welle was previously Head of the Office of the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Poettering MEP, from January 2007.

From 1991 until 1994, Klaus Welle worked as Head of Foreign and European Affairs for the CDU party in Bonn, serving under successive Secretaries General Volker Ruhe and Peter Hintze.

Klaus Welle was appointed as the first Director General for EU Internal Policies within the general secretariat of the European Parliament, the administrative department which services the 17 parliamentary committees dealing with domestic EU issues.

Since 2004, the EPP has been the strongest political force in the main EU institutions as a whole, with Klaus Welle still perceived as an important behind-the-scenes influence at senior level within EPP politics.

Klaus Welle has promoted a long-run shift in the use of staff resources towards policy work, and away from back-office administration and traditional overheads, notably translation and interpretation.

Klaus Welle has strengthened the policy staff servicing parliamentary committees, has emphasised the importance of ex-ante and ex-post evaluation, so that the Parliament can insert itself more effectively in the whole EU policy cycle, and has established a new European Parliamentary Research Service to support such work.

Klaus Welle has used his position to strengthen the Parliament's position in inter-institutional relations, not only with the European Commission, but with the EU Council of Ministers.

Klaus Welle boosted links with the US Congress by opening an EP representative office in Washington DC.

Klaus Welle is a vising professor at the London School of Economics.

Klaus Welle is an advisor to the Yale University-based transatlantic student think tank, European Horizons.

On 23 May 2010, British newspaper Sunday Times, citing an anonymous source, alleged that Klaus Welle intended to provide an Apple iPad to each of the [then] 736 MEPs.

Klaus Welle has promoted moves to a 'paperless' Parliament, developing, for example, an 'eCommittee' facility, whereby Members can table amendments and undertake some other aspects of committee work electronically.