Burkhard Blienert
The Federal Government’s Drug and Addiction Commissioner (official title: Commissioner of the Federal Government for Drug and Addiction Policy) coordinates the Federal Government’s drug and addiction policy, makes suggestions, takes up recommendations by the scientific community and represents the Government’s drug policy vis-à-vis policy-makers, the press and the public. In addition, he heads the German Delegation to the UN regarding drug policy and holds the German seat in various European Union bodies.
The current Drug and Addiction Commissioner of the Federal Government, Burkhard Blienert, took up office on 12 January 2020.
Copyright: Thomas Ecke / BMG
Drug and addiction policies are policies meant to help people, not hurt them. The approach must be to help and protect instead of punish
Burkhard Blienert
Blienert, born 30 May 1966 in Braubach (Rhineland-Palatinate), married, two children, has been actively engaged in drug and addiction policy issues for about 10 years. In the 18th legislative period (2013-2017), he was a member of the German Bundestag, representing his parliamentary group as a regular member of the Committee on Health, the Committee on Cultural and Media Affairs as well as the Budget Committee. During this time, Blienert was his parliamentary group’s rapporteur for issues relating to drugs and addiction.
Since 1990, Blienert has been a member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). He has worked for the SPD party executive committee and served as policy officer of the SPD group in the Land parliament of North Rhine-Westphalia, responsible for school and education, sports and petitions.
Burkhard Blienert studied politics, modern history and sociology (Master’s) and completed the first state examination for lower secondary education in social sciences, history and pedagogy.
As a member of the German Bundestag, Blienert sat on the Board of Trustees of the Federal Agency for Civic Education (BpB), on the Administrative Council of the German National Library and the Hörfunkrat Deutschlandradio broadcasting council as well as on the Administrative Council of the German Federal Film Board (FFA). Currently, he is a member of the Supervisory Board of the Federal Cultural Federation, the National Society of Labour Welfare (AWO), the United Services Union (ver.di), the association “Against Oblivion - For Democracy” of the German Thomas Mann Society as well as the Paderborn district council.
