Gerhardsen's Second Cabinet

Gerhardsen's Second Cabinet
Gerhardsen's Second Cabinet
; Cabinet of Norway
Date formed	5 November 1945
Date dissolved	19 November 1951
People and organisations
Head of state	Haakon VII of Norway
Head of government	Einar Gerhardsen
No. of ministers	15
Member party	Labour Party
Status in legislature	Majority government; 76 / 150 (50.67%) ; ; ; ;
History
Elections	1945 parliamentary election ; 1949 parliamentary election
Legislature terms	1945-1949 ; 1949-1953
Predecessor	Gerhardsen's First Cabinet
Successor	Torp's Cabinet

Gerhardsen's Second Cabinet governed Norway between 5 November 1945 and 19 November 1951. The Labour Party (Ap) cabinet was led by Einar Gerhardsen.^[1]

In May 1948, Gerhardsen told Jens Chr Hauge, that he was considering resigning.^[2] Furthermore, as candidates for prime minister, Gerhardsen named Torp, Sverre Støstad and Lars Evensen.^[2]

On 17 June 1948 parliament started its deliberations about the Helset Case.^[3] Something Gerhardsen knew, but did not tell parliament, was that he had certain^[4] evidence, that "either at the US embassy or in the top leadership of Norway's Armed Forces there were people who were willing to leak top secret info about then minister of defence's conversations with US military attaché, winter and spring 1948, in an attempt to force" the defence minister out of office—with or without the knowledge of Olaf Helset. Later in 1948 Olaf Helset resigned.

Cabinet members


Portfolio	Minister	Took office	Left office
Prime Minister	Einar Gerhardsen	5 November 1945	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Foreign Affairs	Trygve Lie	5 November 1945	2 February 1946	Labour
Minister of Foreign Affairs	Halvard Lange	2 February 1946	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Finance and Customs	Erik Brofoss	5 November 1945	6 December 1947	Labour
Minister of Finance and Customs	Olav Meisdalshagen	6 December 1947	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Defence	Jens Christian Hauge	5 November 1945	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Justice and the Police	O. C. Gundersen	5 November 1945	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Transport and Communications	Nils Langhelle	22 February 1946	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Local Government and Labour	Ulrik Olsen	20 December 1948	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Education and Church Affairs	Kaare Fostervoll	5 November 1945	28 June 1948	Labour
Minister of Education and Church Affairs	Lars Moen	28 June 1948	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Labour	Nils Langhelle	5 November 1945	22 February 1946	Labour
Minister of Social Affairs	Sven Oftedal^[b]	5 November 1945	23 June 1948	Labour
Minister of Social Affairs	Aaslaug Aasland^[a]	20 December 1948	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Agriculture	Kristian Fjeld^[c]	5 November 1945	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Industry	Lars Evensen^[d]	6 December 1947	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Trade and Shipping	Erik Brofoss	6 December 1947	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Fisheries	Reidar Carlsen	1 July 1946	19 November 1951	Labour
Minister of Provisioning and Reconstruction	Oscar Torp	5 November 1945	10 January 1948	Labour
Minister of Provisioning and Reconstruction	Nils Hønsvald	10 January 1948	14 September 1950	Labour
Consulative Minister	Aaslaug Aasland	5 November 1945	20 December 1948	Labour
	Peder Holt	5 November 1945	30 June 1948	Labour
	Reidar Carlsen	5 November 1945	1 July 1946	Labour