Alain Berset became Secretary General of the Council of Europe on 18 September 2024.
Prior to that, Berset was an elected Minister in the Swiss government (Federal Council) between 2012 and 2023. During that time, he headed the Federal Department of Home Affairs as Swiss Minister for Health, Social Affairs, Culture, Equality and Anti-Discrimination, and was Minister for Public Health throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. Berset also served twice as President of the Swiss Confederation (2018 and 2023), during which he represented Switzerland on the United Nations Security Council and at the Council of Europe’s 4th Summit of Heads of State and Government, where he signed the Reykjavik Declaration on behalf of his country.
Before joining the Federal Council, Berset was a member of the Council of States, the upper house of the Swiss Parliament. He was elected as its youngest member in 2003 and went on to serve as its President, from 2008 to 2009. He was also Vice-Chair of the Socialist Group in the Federal Parliament, 2005-2011.
Prior to elected politics, Berset held academic roles in economics at the University of Neuchâtel and the Hamburg Institute of International Economics and worked as an independent communications and strategy consultant for associations, companies and non-governmental organisations.
He has MSc in political science and a PhD in economics, both from the University of Neuchâtel.
