Hein Vos

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Dutch politician and economist (1903–1972)

title: "Hein Vos" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1903-births", "1972-deaths", "chairmen-of-the-labour-party-(netherlands)", "commanders-of-the-order-of-orange-nassau", "delft-university-of-technology-alumni", "academic-staff-of-the-delft-university-of-technology", "dutch-agnostics", "dutch-chief-executives-in-the-finance-industry", "dutch-chief-executives-in-the-mass-media-industry", "dutch-civil-engineers", "dutch-financial-writers", "dutch-former-christians", "dutch-magazine-editors", "dutch-nonprofit-directors", "dutch-nonprofit-executives", "dutch-political-writers", "dutch-trade-union-leaders", "former-calvinist-and-reformed-christians", "dutch-gay-politicians", "dutch-gay-writers", "knights-of-the-order-of-the-netherlands-lion", "dutch-lgbtq-businesspeople", "lgbtq-cabinet-members-of-the-netherlands", "lgbtq-members-of-the-parliament-of-the-netherlands", "macroeconomists", "members-of-the-council-of-state-(netherlands)", "members-of-the-house-of-representatives-(netherlands)", "members-of-the-senate-(netherlands)", "members-of-the-social-and-economic-council", "ministers-of-economic-affairs-of-the-netherlands", "ministers-of-housing-and-spatial-planning-of-the-netherlands", "ministers-of-transport-and-water-management-of-the-netherlands", "municipal-councillors-of-amsterdam", "municipal-councillors-in-south-holland", "people-from-rijswijk", "people-from-opsterland", "people-from-nijkerk", "people-from-wassenaar", "social-democratic-workers'-party-(netherlands)-politicians", "writers-about-activism-and-social-change", "20th-century-dutch-businesspeople", "20th-century-dutch-civil-servants", "20th-century-dutch-economists", "20th-century-dutch-engineers", "20th-century-dutch-male-writers", "20th-century-dutch-politicians", "20th-century-dutch-lgbtq-people", "labour-party-(netherlands)-mps", "dutch-mps-1948–1952", "labour-party-(netherlands)-cabinet-members", "labour-party-(netherlands)-senators"] description: "Dutch politician and economist (1903–1972)" topic_path: "economics" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hein_Vos" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Dutch politician and economist (1903–1972) ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox officeholder"]

Field	Value
name	Hein Vos
image	Hein Vos 1961 (1).jpg
caption	Hein Vos in 1961
office	Member of the Council of State
term_start	21 February 1968
term_end	23 April 1972
vicepresident	Louis Beel
office1	Parliamentary leader in the Senate
term_start1	15 November 1960
term_end1	16 February 1968
predecessor1	Joris in 't Veld
successor1	Maarten de Niet Gerritzoon
parliamentarygroup1	Labour Party
office2	Member of the Senate
term_start2	6 November 1956
term_end2	16 February 1968
office3	Chairman of the Labour Party
term_start3	10 May 1960
term_end3	24 March 1961
Ad interim
leader3	Jaap Burger
predecessor3	Evert Vermeer
successor3	Ko Suurhoff
term_start4	5 June 1953
term_end4	23 February 1955
leader4	Willem Drees
predecessor4	Koos Vorrink
successor4	Evert Vermeer
office5	Member of the Social and Economic Council
term_start5	1 June 1950
term_end5	21 February 1968
1blankname5	Chairman
1namedata5
office6	Minister of Transport and Water Management
term_start6	1 March 1947
term_end6	7 August 1948
primeminister6	Louis Beel
predecessor6	Himself
as Minister of Transport
successor6	Josef van Schaik (ad interim)
office7	Minister of Public Works and Reconstruction
term_start7	15 November 1946
term_end7	3 March 1947
Ad interim
primeminister7	Louis Beel
predecessor7	Johan Ringers
successor7	Lambertus Neher
as Minister of Reconstruction and Housing
office8	Minister of Transport
term_start8	3 July 1946
term_end8	1 March 1947
primeminister8	Louis Beel
predecessor8	Steef van Schaik
as Minister of Transport and Energy
successor8	Himself
as Minister of Transport and Water Management
office9	Minister of Commerce and Industry
term_start9	25 June 1945
term_end9	3 July 1946
primeminister9	Willem Schermerhorn
predecessor9	Hans Gispen
as Minister of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture
successor9	Gerardus Huysmans
as Minister of Economic Affairs
office10	Member of the House of Representatives
term_start10	27 July 1948
term_end10	16 December 1948
term_start11	4 June 1946
term_end11	9 July 1946
term_start12	8 June 1937
term_end12	25 June 1945
birthname	Hendrik Vos
birth_date
birth_place	Tijnje, Netherlands
death_date
death_place	Wassenaar, Netherlands
party	Labour Party (from 1946)
otherparty	Social Democratic Workers' Party (1923–1946)
partner	Aar van de Werfhorst
(1945–1972)
alma_mater	Delft Institute of Technology
(Bachelor of Engineering, Master of Engineering)
occupation	Politician · Civil servant · Economist · Civil engineer · Researcher · Businessman · Corporate director · Nonprofit director · Trade Union leader · Media administrator · Editor · Author
::

Hendrik "Hein" Vos (5 July 1903 – 23 April 1972) was a Dutch politician of the Social Democratic Workers' Party (SDAP) and later the Labour Party (PvdA) and economist.

Biography

Vos attended a gymnasium in Heerenveen from April 1917 until May 1921 and applied at the Delft Institute of Technology in June 1921, majoring in Electrical engineering and obtaining a Bachelor of Engineering degree in June 1923 before graduating with a Master of Engineering degree in July 1927. Vos worked as a civil servant for the municipality of Deventer from July 1927 until September 1928 and for the Netherlands Patent Office of the Ministry of Economic Affairs from September 1928 until July 1934. Vos served on the municipal council of Rijswijk from 1 September 1931 until 22 July 1934. Vos worked as a trade union leader for the Dutch Confederation of Trade Unions (NVV) from July 1934 until 8 June 1937 and as the director of the Social Democratic Workers' Party think tank from July 1934 until May 1940. Vos also served as editor-in-chief of the party newspaper * Vrijheid, Arbeid en Brood* from June 1935 until May 1940. Vos served on the municipal council of Amsterdam from 3 September 1935 until 5 September 1939.

Vos was elected to the House of Representatives in the 1937 general election, taking office on 8 June 1937 serving as a frontbencher and spokesperson for economic affairs. On 10 May 1940 Nazi Germany invaded the Netherlands and the government fled to London to escape the German occupation. During the German occupation Vos continued to serve as a Member of the House of Representatives in name only but in reality the de facto political influence of the House of Representatives was marginalized by the German occupation authority.

Following the end of World War II, Queen Wilhelmina ordered the formation of a national unity government to serve in a caretaker capacity until the new election, with Vos appointed as Minister of Commerce and Industry in the Schermerhorn–Drees cabinet, taking office on 25 June 1945. On 9 February 1946, the Social Democratic Workers' Party (SDAP), the Free-thinking Democratic League (VDB) and the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) chose to merge to form the Labour Party (PvdA). After the 1946 general election, Vos returned to the House of Representatives, taking office on 4 June 1946. Following the 1946 cabinet formation, he was appointed as Minister of Transport in the Beel I cabinet, taking office on 3 July 1946. Vos served as acting Minister of Public Works and Reconstruction from 15 November 1946 until 3 March 1947 following the resignation Johan Ringers. On 1 March 1947 the Minister of Transport was renamed as the Minister of Transport and Water Management. After the 1948 general election of, Vos again returned to the House of Representatives, taking office on 27 July 1948. Following the 1948 cabinet formation, Vos was not giving a cabinet post in the new cabinet; the Beel I cabinet was replaced by the Drees–Van Schaik cabinet on 7 August 1948 and Vos continued to serve in the House of Representatives as a frontbencher and spokesperson for economic affairs and small business.

In December 1948 Vos was named as chief executive officer (CEO) of the insurance company NV Centrale Algemene Levensverzekeringsmaatschappij, he resigned from the House of Representatives on 16 December 1948 and was installed as CEO on 1 January 1949. Vos remained in active in national politics, he served as Chairman of the Labour Party from 5 June 1953 until 23 February 1955. Vos was elected to the Senate in the 1956 Senate election, taking office on 6 November 1956 serving as a frontbencher and spokesperson for finances and agriculture. After the 1960 Senate election, Vos was selected as parliamentary leader of the Labour Party, taking office on 15 November 1960. In February 1968 Vos was nominated as a member of the Council of State; he resigned as parliamentary leader and member of the Senate on 16 February 1968 and was installed as a member of the Council of State on 21 February 1968.

Vos was known for his abilities as a manager and "policy wonk". He holds the distinction as the first known LGBT member of the House of Representatives and government minister of the Netherlands, this fact was an open secret in Dutch politics at that time.

Decorations

::data[format=table title="Honours"]

Ribbon bar	Honour	Country	Date	Comment
[[File:Order of the Netherlands Lion ribbon - Knight.svg	80px]]	Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion	Netherlands	31 August 1948
[[File:Order of Orange-Nassau ribbon - Commander.svg	80px]]	Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau	Netherlands	30 April 1964
::

References

{{in lang. nl [https://socialhistory.org/bwsa/biografie/vos-h Hein Vos], Biografisch Woordenboek van het Socialisme en de Arbeidersbeweging in Nederland, 10 July 2002
{{in lang. nl [http://www.parlementairdocumentatiecentrum.nl/id/vg09llc8idtv Ir. H. Vos], Parlementair Documentatie Centrum, 10 December 2010
{{in lang. nl [https://www.uitgeverijbalans.nl/leesfragment-homo-politicus/ Homo politicus], Uitgeverij Balans, 17 March 2016

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::