Luigi Preti

Luigi Preti (23 October 1914 – 19 January 2009) was an Italian politician and member of the Italian Democratic Socialist Party.

Luigi Preti
Minister of Transport
In office 20 March 1979 – 4 April 1980
Prime Minister	Giulio Andreotti Francesco Cossiga
Preceded by	Vittorino Colombo
Succeeded by	Rino Formica
In office 7 July 1973 – 23 November 1974
Prime Minister	Mariano Rumor
Preceded by	Aldo Bozzi
Succeeded by	Mario Martinelli
Minister for Public Administration Reform
In office 4 December 1963 – 21 January 1966
Prime Minister	Aldo Moro
Preceded by	Roberto Lucifredi
Succeeded by	Virginio Bertinelli
Minister of Foreign Trade
In office 22 February 1962 – 22 June 1963
Prime Minister	Amintore Fanfani
Preceded by	Mario Martinelli
Succeeded by	Giuseppe Trabucchi
Minister of Finance
In office 18 January 1954 – 19 September 1954
Prime Minister	Amintore Fanfani
Preceded by	Giulio Andreotti
Succeeded by	Paolo Emilio Taviani
In office 23 February 1966 – 5 June 1968
Prime Minister	Aldo Moro
Preceded by	Roberto Tremelloni
Succeeded by	Mario Ferrari Aggradi
In office 27 March 1970 – 17 February 1972
Prime Minister	Mariano Rumor Emilio Colombo
Preceded by	Giacinto Bosco
Succeeded by	Giuseppe Pella
Minister of Budget
In office 13 December 1968 – 6 August 1969
Prime Minister	Mariano Rumor
Preceded by	Mario Ferrari Aggradi
Succeeded by	Giuseppe Caron
Member of the Chamber of Deputies
In office 8 May 1948 – 1 July 1987
Member of the Constituent Assembly
In office 25 June 1946 – 31 January 1948
Personal details
Born	(1914-10-23)23 October 1914 Ferrara, Emilia Romagna, Italy
Died	19 January 2009(2009-01-19) (aged 94) Bologna, Emilia Romagna, Italy
Political party	PSI (1946–1947) PSDI (1947–1995) SOLE (1995–1996) RSD (1996–2009)
Spouse	Anna Fabbri
Children	3
Alma mater	University of Ferrara University of Bologna
Profession	Politician, lawyer, teacher, journalist

Biography

Preti was born in Ferrara. He graduated in law from the University Ferrara and subsequently in Literature from the University of Bologna.

After completing his studies, he taught history and philosophy in some high schools, and later became a professor of Institutions of Public Law at the University of Ferrara. The didactic activity was alternated with that of journalist and author of historical and legal publications. Preti did not hide his socialist ideas and when, in 1941, he was called to arms, he was denounced to the military court for "lese majesty, defeatism and insubordination". Held in a military prison awaiting trial, he managed to escape the death sentence, thanks to the fall of the regime and the subsequent armistice.

After working in Milan, Preti moved to Switzerland where, in Zurich, he came into contact with Ignazio Silone, who entrusted him with the direction of the periodical "The future of workers".

Returning to Italy at the end of the conflict, in 1946 he was elected provincial secretary of the Italian Socialist Party in Ferrara, and was elected to the municipal council. In June of the same year he was elected deputy to the Constituent Assembly, collecting as many as 20.516 preference votes.

On 12 January 1947 Preti joined the Italian Socialist Workers' Party (later known as the Italian Democratic Socialist Party, or PSDI), of which he was President from 1988 to 1992 and Honorary President from 1992 to 1994.

He was Deputy from 1946 to 1987; he also served as Minister of Finance, for International trade, for Budget, for Public Administration and for Transport.

In 1995 Preti left the PSDI and founded (together with Enrico Ferri) the European Liberal Social Democracy party (SOLE). Opposed to Ferri's decision to bring the SOLE into the Christian Democratic Centre, Preti left the party to found the Movement of Social Democratic Rebirth.

He died in 2009 at the age of 94.

External links

• Media related to Luigi Preti at Wikimedia Commons