Editing Simone Veil (section)

==Political career==
[[File:Simone Veil02b.jpg|thumb|left|130px|Simone Veil in Deauville, 31 May 1988.]]

===Ministry of Justice, 1956–1974===
After graduating from the [[Faculty of Law of Paris]] with a law degree, Veil spent several years practising law. In 1954, she passed the national examination to become a magistrate.<ref name="Simone Veil">{{cite web|title=Simone Veil|last=Hottell |first=Ruth |url=http://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/veil-simone|website=Jewish Women's Archive|access-date=2 July 2014}}</ref>{{sfn | Veil | 2007 | p=116}} She entered the National Penitentiary Administration under the [[Ministry of Justice]], where she held a senior position and was responsible for judicial affairs.<ref name="histoireparlesfemmes.wordpress.com" /> She improved women's prison conditions and the treatment of incarcerated women.<ref name="histoireparlesfemmes.wordpress.com">{{cite web|title=Simone Veil, défenseuse de l'avortement|url=http://histoireparlesfemmes.wordpress.com/2014/02/14/simone-veil-defenseure-de-lavortement/|website=L'histoire par les femmes|access-date=2 July 2014|language=fr|date=14 February 2014}}</ref> In 1964, she left to become the director of [[civil affairs]], where she improved French women's general rights and status.<ref name="Simone Veil"/> She successfully achieved the right to dual parental control of family legal matters and adoptive rights for women.<ref name="Simone Veil"/> In 1970, she became secretary general of the {{Ill|Supreme Magistracy Council|fr|Conseil supérieur de la magistrature (France)}}.<ref name="histoireparlesfemmes.wordpress.com"/>

===Minister of Health, 1974–1979===
From 1974 to 1979, Veil was a [[Minister of Health (France)|Minister of Health]] in the governments of [[Prime Minister of France|prime minister]]s [[Jacques Chirac]] and [[Raymond Barre]]: from 28 May 1974 to 29 March 1977, Minister of Health; from 29 March 1977 to 3 April 1978, Minister of Health and Social Security; and from 3 April 1978 to 4 July 1979, Minister of Health and Family.

She pushed forward two notable laws. The first, passed on 4 December 1974, facilitated access to [[contraception]] such as the [[combined oral contraceptive pill]], which was legalized in 1967.

The second, passed on 17 January 1975, legalized [[abortion in France]] – this was her hardest-fought political initiative and the one for which she is best known. The abortion debate was particularly difficult for her because those in favour of keeping abortion illegal launched aggressive personal attacks against Veil and her family.<ref name="Simone Veil"/> Since the passing of the law, many have paid tribute to Veil and thanked her for her courageous and determined fight.<ref name="Simone Veil"/><ref>{{Cite web|date=20 September 2016|title=Simone Veil, French Holocaust survivor who championed women's rights|url=https://webdoc.france24.com/obituary-simone-veil-holocaust-women-abortion-france/|access-date=21 October 2020|website=FRANCE 24|language=en}}</ref>

In 1976, Veil also helped to introduce a ban on smoking in certain public places and worked on the problem of medically underserved rural areas.<ref name=lancet/>

===European Parliament, 1979–1993===
In 1979, Veil was elected as a [[Member of the European Parliament]] in the [[1979 European Parliament election in France|first European parliamentary election]]. In its first session, the new Parliament elected Veil as its first [[President of the European Parliament|President]],<ref name="lancet">{{Cite journal |last=Casassus |first=Barbara |date=2017-07-22 |title=Obituary Simone Veil |url=https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)31880-9/fulltext |journal=[[The Lancet]] |volume=390 |issue=10092 |pages=356|doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(17)31880-9 |s2cid=54386828 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> a position she held until 1982.<ref name="EP profile"/> The archives concerning her term as President of the European Parliament are deposited at the [[Historical Archives of the European Union]] in Florence.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archives.eui.eu/en/fonds/352139?item=PE1.P1|title=Cabinet de la Présidence Simone Veil|website=archives.eui.eu|access-date=23 February 2018}}</ref>

In 1981, Veil won the prestigious [[Karlspreis|Charlemagne Prize]], an award given to honour the contributions made by individuals to advancing the unity of Europe.<ref name="Trade Arabia">{{cite web|title=Bahrain business pioneer Veil mourned|url=http://ftp.tradearabia.com/news/MISC_234083.html|website=Trade Arabia|access-date=2 July 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140707061411/http://ftp.tradearabia.com/news/MISC_234083.html|archive-date=7 July 2014}}</ref>

After the end of her term as President in 1982, she remained a member of the European Parliament; she was re-elected for the last time in the [[1989 European Parliament election in France|1989 election]], stepping down in 1993.<ref name="EP profile" /> She was Chair of the [[European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party Group|European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party]] until 1989.<ref name="EP profile">{{cite web |url=http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meps/en/1174/SIMONE_VEIL_home.html |title=Simone VEIL: History of parliamentary service |website=[[Europa (Web portal)|Europa.eu]] |publisher=European Parliament |access-date=30 January 2017}}</ref>

Between 1984 and 1992, she served on the [[European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety|Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety]], and the [[Committee on Political Affairs (European Parliament)|Committee on Political Affairs]]. After stepping down from these committees, she served on the [[Committee on Foreign Affairs (EU)|Committee on Foreign Affairs]] and its related [[Subcommittee on Human Rights]]. Between 1989 and 1993, she was also a member of Parliament's delegation to the [[ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly]], serving as its vice-chairwoman until 1992.<ref name="EP profile"/>

===Return to French Government, 1993–1995===
From 31 March 1993 to 16 May 1995, Veil was again a member of the cabinet, serving as [[Minister of State]] and [[Minister of Health (France)|Minister of Health]], [[Minister of Social Affairs (France)|Social Affairs]] and the city in the government of Prime Minister [[Édouard Balladur]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Décret n° 76 du 30 MARS 1993 RELATIF LA COMPOSITION DU GOUVERNEMENT |trans-title=Decree n° 76 of 30 MARCH 1993 RELATING TO THE COMPOSITION OF THE GOVERNMENT |url=https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000543393 |access-date=2023-07-13 |website=[[Légifrance]] |language=fr}}</ref> In the mid-1990s, she worked to help the disabled, [[HIV/AIDS|HIV]]-positive patients, and mothers of young children.<ref name=lancet/>

===Member of the Constitutional Council, 1998===
In 1998, she was appointed to the [[Constitutional Council of France]]. In 2005, she put herself briefly on leave from the council in order to campaign in favour of the [[Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe]]. This action was criticized because it seemed to contradict the legal provisions that members of the council should keep a distance from partisan politics: the independence and impartiality of the council would be jeopardized, critics said, if members could put themselves "on leave" in order to campaign for a project.<ref name="lci.tf1.fr">{{cite news|title=Référendum : Simone Veil répond à Debré|url=http://lci.tf1.fr/france/2005-05/referendum-simone-veil-repond-debre-4860219.html?xtmc=simone%20veil%20debr%C3%A9&xtcr=6|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714150838/http://lci.tf1.fr/france/2005-05/referendum-simone-veil-repond-debre-4860219.html?xtmc=simone%20veil%20debr%C3%A9&xtcr=6|url-status=dead|archive-date=14 July 2014|newspaper=My TF1 News|access-date=30 January 2017|language=fr}}</ref> In response, Veil said that she, the president of the [[Constitutional Council of France|Constitutional Council]] and colleagues had deliberated on the issue beforehand and they had given her permission to take her leave without having to resign. Being a staunch supporter of the European project, she believed others should not "ignore the historical dimension of [[European integration]]".<ref name="lci.tf1.fr"/>