Candidates
Your candidates - Heads of List
Austria
SPÖ
Head of list: Dr. Hannes SWOBODA
Hannes Swoboda was born on November 11th, 1946. He has an MA(economics) and LLD from the university of Vienna. He started his political career as a member of the Vienna Assembly and Municipality Council in 1983. From 1988 to 1994, he was Municipal councillor in Vienna. Since 1996 Swoboda is member of the European Parliament. He is Vice-Chairman of the socialist Group in the EP.
List of candidates
Belgium
PS
Head of list: Jean-Claude Marcourt
List of candidates
SPa
Head of list: Kathleen Van Brempt
Kathleen Van Brempt has grown up in an average Flemish family. Her father was a dockworker, her mother a teacher. Kathleen studied political science at the University of Antwerp. She has started her political career behind the scenes. First as a policy advisor at the study centre, as political secretary and as deputy at the Flemish cabinet for employment.
In 1999 Kathleen was elected as a member of European Parliament. The dockworkers' statute was a special dossier for her. She was one of the fore fighters against the liberalisation of harbour services. And it paid off: the harbour directive was voted against.
She became state secretary for labour organization and well being at federal level in 2003. And Minister of mobility, social economy and equal rights in the Flemish government in 2004. One of her main realizations is the higher awareness of the importance of a more sustainable mobility. Road safety was another priority of Kathleen. And her decree on equal rights and equal treatment made it possible to develop a registration desk for mediation and information in organisations and companies . Last but not least, she developed and supported a lot of new projects in the social economy area, good for 6000 additional jobs.
Bulgaria
BSP
Head of list: Ivaylo Kalfin
List of candidates
Cyprus
EDEK
Head of list:coming soon
List of candidates
Czech Republic
CSSD
Head of list: Doc. Ing. Jirì Havel, CSc.
Jirí Havel was born on 20 August 1957 in Prague. He has a PhD from the Prague Economic University. Since 1992 he has been teaching at Charles University in Prague, working also as head of department of institutional economics and financial economics. He was Vice-President of Czech Economic Society (2002-2004). Until 1989 he was a member of the Communist Party and from 1990 he collaborated with expert teams of re-established Czech Social Democratic Party (CSSD). He has been Vice-Chairman of the Party's Economic Committee since 1998. He was an advisor of the Czech government and Chairman of the National Property Fund (1999-2001). In 2006 he became Deputy Prime minister for economic issues and he is currently CSSD speaker for education.
List of candidatesDenmark
SD
Head of list: Dan Jørgensen
Dan Jørgensen is MEP, 33 years old, elected in 2004, and representing of course the Danish Socialdemocratic Party. Dan is the Vice Chairman of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, member of the Temporary Committee on Climate Change and member of the Budgetary Control Committee.
Estonia
SDE
Head of list: Ivari Padar
Ivari Padar was born on March the 12th, 1965.He started his career in 1993 as Assistant to the Mayor of Võru and the next year he became Chairman of the Võru Farmers Union.
From 1995 to 1997, he had been assistant to the Secretary General at the Ministry of Finance. Immediately after he became Director General of the AS HT Hulgi.
In 1999 he took the office of Minister of Agriculture and in 2003 he was elected Member of the Parliament.
Since 2007, Ivari has been the Minister of Finance in the Estonian Government.
Finland
SDP
France
PS
Heads of list:
North-West - Gilles Pargneaux
Ile de France - Harlem Désir
West - Bernadette Vergnaud
Centre - Henri Weber
East - Catherine Trautman
South-West - Kader Arif
South-East - Vincent Peillon
Outre-mers - Erika Bareigts
Germany
SPD
Head of list: Martin Schulz
Martin Schulz was born on 20 December 1955. Since 1984 he has been a municipal councilor in Würselen. He became mayor of Würselen between 1987 and 1998. From 1991-1999 he was member of the SPD Party Council. Since 1995 he has been member of the Mittelrhein SPD Executive. He has been chairman of the SPD Aachen District since 1996 and since 1999 he has been member of the SPD Federal Executive. 1994 he has become a Member of the European Parliament. He was the PSE Group coordinator of the Subcommittee on Human Rights (1994 -1996) and PSE Group coordinator of the Committee on Civil Liberties and Home Affairs (1996-2000). He was the first vice-chairman of the PSE Group from 2002 to 2004. Since May 2004 he has been holding the position of President of the Parliamentary Group of the Party of European Socialists.
List of candidates
Greece
PASOK
Head of list: Giorgos Papakonstantinou
List of candidates
Hungary
MSZP
Head of list: Kinga Göncz
List of candidates
MSZDP
Head of list: coming soon
List of candidates: coming soon
Ireland
LP
Head of list: Proinsias De Rossa
Proinsias De Rossa is your Labour Member of the European Parliament and is a leading member of the Socialist Group. He gives priority to eliminating poverty, strengthening social policy, improving the environment, defending jobs and opposing war.
Italy
DS
Head of list: coming soon
List of candidates: coming soon
PS
Latvia
LSDSP
Head of list: Atis Lejinš
Atis Lejinš was born in Jeglava in 1942. He is member of the Latvian Popular Front in Sweden, where he was chairman from 1989 to 1992 and council member in 1991-1992. In 1991, he took the office of Head of Foreign Affairs Department and in 1999 he also worked as Consultant for the EU and the Baltic states for the World Bank. Since January 1992, Atis has been director of the Latvian Institute of International Affairs, which he also founded.
Lithuania
LSDP
Head of list: Vilija Blinkevičiūtė
Vilija Blinkevičiūtė was born in Linkuva, Lithuania.From 1983 to 2008, she had been working in the Ministry of Social Security and Labour, first as undersecretary (1994 - 1996), then as Vice-Minister (1996 - 2000) and finally as Minister, during the rule of four mandates (2000 - 2008).
In 2004 Vilija was also nominated for the Presidency of the Republic of Lithuania (2004).
Since 2004, she has been Member of the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania.
Luxembourg
LSAP
Head of list: Robert Goebbels
Robert Goebbels was born on 3 April 1944 in Luxembourg. He is a professional journalist. From 1970 to 1985, he was Secretary General of the Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party. He first was elected to the National Parliament in 1984, and got re-elected in 1989, 1994, 1999 and 2004. From 1984 to 1999, he served in three governments, as Secretary of State in charge of Foreign Affairs and Secretary of State in charge of the economy, then as Minister for the Economy, Minister for Transport, Minister for Public Works and Minister for Energy.
In June 1999, he was elected to both the national and the European Parliament and chose to go to the EP. A vice-president of the Parliamentary Group of the PES and the Socialist spokesman for economic and social affairs, Robert Goebbels was also the socialist coordinator of the EP's Economic and Monetary Committee. He was re-elected as a Parliamentarian both at national and at European level in June 2004 and once again, he chose for the European Parliament. Now a vice-president elect of the Socialist Group, he is responsible for the industrial policy and research, energy, internal market and the protection of consumers, transport and tourism as well budgetary matters.
List of candidates
List of candidates
Malta
MLP
Head of list: coming soon
List of candidates
Netherlands
PvdA
Head of list: Thijs Berman
Thijs Berman (Coevorden, The Netherlands,1957) has been a Member of the European Parliament for The Netherlands since 2004. Thijs Berman obtained a higher degree in psychology in 1987. He has been a correspondent since 1987 for various Dutch media, and was stationed amongst other places in Paris and Moscow. He worked as a radio and television presenter since 1995. He is a Member of the European Parliament on behalf of PSE. He is Vice Chair in the Development Committee. His main focus is on a social and solidary EU development policy including a fair trade and a fair agricultural policy, to oppose the current foodcrisis and existing childlabour, and policy coherence for development. Thijs Berman is also a substitute member on the Budget and the Petitions Committee, and on the subcommitte of Human Rights, the delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly and the delegation to the Euro-Latin American Assembly. Poland
SLD - UP
Heads of list:
POMORSKIE: Pastusiak Longin
KUJAWSKO – POMORSKIE: Janusz Zemke
PODLASKIE WARMIŃSKO – MAZURSKIE: Tadeusz Iwiński
MAZOWIECKIE (Warszawa + wianuszek): Wojciech Olejniczak
MAZOWIECKIE: Marek Wikiński
ŁÓDZKIE: Jolanta Szymanek-Deresz
WIELKOPOLSKIE: Marek Siwiec
LUBELSKIE: Czerniak Jacek
PODKARPACKIE: Marta Niewczas
MAŁOPOLSKIE ŚWIĘTOKRZYSKIE: Andrzej Szejna
ŚLĄSKIE: Jerzy Markowski
DOLNOŚLĄSKIE OPOLSKIE: Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg
LUBUSKIE ZACHODNIOPOMORSKIE: Bogusław Liberadzki
List of candidates
Portugal
PS
Head of list: Vital Moreira
He graduated in the Law School of the University of Coimbra, where he later obtained a PhD in Public Law. He is currently an associated professor in the same University, being a well known constitutional lawyer in the country. He is also the president of the "Center for Public Law and Regulation Studies" and the director of the "Center for Human Rights".
Vital Moreira is the national director of "European Master's Degree in Human Rights and Democratization" in Venice. He was also a member of the "Venice Commission" (Council of Europe) and of the EU network of independent experts to monitor the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU.
Following the democratic revolution in 1974, Vital Moreira was member of the Constituent Assembly that approved the new Portuguese Constitution (1976). From 1976 to 1982 he served as MP. From 1983 to 1989 he was also judge of the Portuguese Constitutional Court. Currently he belongs to the board of the "Forum Novas Fronteiras", a think-tank close to the Portuguese Socialist Party.
Vital Moreira is a regular writer for the widly-read newspapers "Público" and "Diário Económico".
Romania
PSD
Head of list: Adrian Severin
Adrian Severin was born in Bucharest on 28 March 1954. He studied Law and Economics, and he got a PhD in Law in 1986.
He had been Vice-President of the Romanian Democratic Party (1992-1998) and he is currently member of the PSD. Since 1990, Severin has been Member of the Romanian Chamber of Deputies, taking part into the government, also being Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs in 1996-1997.
From 2000 to 2004, Adrian Severin had been President and Honorary President of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly and since 2003, he has been cooperating with the United Nations as Member of the Parliamentary Assembly for Global Action and Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Belarus.
On 1 January 2007, with the accession of Romania to the European Union, Adrian Severin became MEP and head of the Romanian Social -Democrat delegation in the EP.
Slovak Republic
SMER SD
Head of list: Boris Zala
List of candidates
Slovenia
SD
Head of list: Zoran Thaler
Zoran Thaler was born the 21 January 1962. He entered politics as a young man as a member of the Association of Socialist Youth of Slovenia (ZSMS). In the first democratic elections held in Slovenia in 1990 he was elected a Member of Parliament at an early age of 28; and again in 1992. During those years he had been appointed Deputy Foreign Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1995.
In 1996 he was elected a MP for a third time, and a year later he became the Minister of Foreign Affairs for a second time, during the period when Slovenia was waiting and seizing the opportunity to gain membership in the EU. After having worked as a professional politician for eleven years, and seeing that his work was done, Zoran decided to work as an entrepreneur in the private sector at an international level.
In 1996 he was elected a MP for a third time, and a year later he became the Minister of Foreign Affairs for a second time, during the period when Slovenia was waiting and seizing the opportunity to gain membership in the EU. After having worked as a professional politician for eleven years, and seeing that his work was done, Zoran decided to work as an entrepreneur in the private sector at an international level.
Spain
PSOE
Head of list: Juan Fernando López Aguilar
Juan Fernando López Aguilar was born at Las Palmas de Gran Canaria in 1961. He has held office in Government at Spanish administration, as a parlamentary Advisor to both Ministers of Justice Enrique Múgica and Tomás Quadra-Salcedo (1990-1993). From 1993 to 1998 was appointed General Director of Cabinet for the Ministry of Public Administration firstly, and later on Education. In 1996 he was first elected Member of the Parliament of Spain. He was Minister of Justice from 2004 to 2007, when he was appointed candidate for the Presidency of the Regional Government of the Canary Islands in the elections held in May 2007. He was elected as a member of the national executive committee in the 35th Federal Congress of the PSOE, and he was confirmed during the 36th. Sweden
SAP
Head of list: Marita Ulvskog
Marita Ulvskog was born in Luleå on 4 September 1951. She started her career as a journalist for radio, daily and specialist press in 1973. In 1994, she was appointed Minister for Public Administration and she covered the role until 1996, when she became Minister for Culture (1996-2004).
Since 1998, Marita has been Member of the Parliament and since 2004 Secretary General of the Swedish Socialist Party.
Since 1998, Marita has been Member of the Parliament and since 2004 Secretary General of the Swedish Socialist Party.
United Kingdom
LP
Heads of lists:
East Midlands - Glenis Willmott
Glenis Willmott has been the Labour MEP for the East Midlands, since February 2006.
Glenis sits on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee and is very much involved with action to combat climate change. She is the spokesperson for the Labour group of MEPs on health issues and is co-chair of the European Parliament Cervical Cancer Interest Group. As a former trade union organiser, health and safety at work is a big priority for Glenis and she led for her other Committee, Employment and Social Affairs, on the EU's Health and Safety at Work Strategy 2007-2013. Glenis is Leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party.
Glenis sits on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee and is very much involved with action to combat climate change. She is the spokesperson for the Labour group of MEPs on health issues and is co-chair of the European Parliament Cervical Cancer Interest Group. As a former trade union organiser, health and safety at work is a big priority for Glenis and she led for her other Committee, Employment and Social Affairs, on the EU's Health and Safety at Work Strategy 2007-2013. Glenis is Leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party.
Eastern - Richard Howitt
Richard Howitt is Labour's MEP for the East of England and was first elected in 1994. As Labour's spokesperson for Foreign Affairs in the European Parliament and Vice-Chair of the Human Rights Sub Committee, Richard has championed enlargement of the EU and engagement with third countries based on shared values and mutual respect for human rights. Richard takes the lead for the European Parliament’s on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and represents Europe in global initiatives to promote more socially and environmentally responsible business. As a former voluntary sector worker himself, Richard continues to campaign on social, anti-discrimination and disability rights.
London - Claude Moraes
Claude Moraes MEP was elected to the European Parliament for London in 1999 and again in 2004 where he led the London List of candidates. He was one of the first Asian MEPs and London's first ethnic minority MEP. He is Labour's spokesperson on Employment and Social Affairs and a member of the Justice and Home Affairs Committee. Claude is also President of the Intergroup on Anti-Racism and Diversity, Co-President of the Intergroup on Ageing, and active on the issues of regeneration and social exclusion; older peoples' issues, human rights; employment rights; international development issues; and justice and home affairs issues including migration, people-trafficking, European police cooperation and the Far Right in Europe.
North East - Stephen Hughes
Stephen Hughes MEP is a politician very close to the trade union movement. The focus of his work has always been on better rights and protection for workers , those outside of the world of work, and their families, both within Europe and beyond. Working in partnership with trade unions, Labour MEPs have achieved major developments towards a Europe that is better for your life at work. Stephen championed a raft of health and safety protections, equal treatment rights for part-time, fixed term and temporary agency workers, as well as making much progress in tackling all forms of discrimination.
North West - Arlene McCarthy
Arlene McCarthy was first elected as a Labour MEP for the North West Region in June 1999 and was re-elected in June 2004. Arlene is Chair of the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee and a Member of the EU-US Parliamentary Delegation. She is Vice-President of the European Parliament's All-Party Sports Intergroup and the Convener of the European Parliament's Urban Affairs Working Group.
Scotland - David Martin
David Martin has been an MEP for Scotland since 1984. He was the Vice President of the European Parliament from 1989-2004. His responsibilities included overseeing the Parliament's relations with national parliaments and regional assemblies. He is a member of the European Parliament's International Trade Committee and a member of the Petitions Committee, and a substitute on the Environment Committee. He is Scotland’s only member of the Temporary Committee on Climate Change. Before life as an MEP David started out as an animal rights campaigner and became a Labour Lothian Regional Councillor. He was leader of the British Labour MEPs between 1987-88. David is an active member of the UNITE & GMB trades unions.
South East - Peter Skinner
Peter Skinner was born in Oxford was elected to the European Parliament for the South of England Region in 1994. He has been a Member of the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee for 13 years and has been the European Parliamentary Labour Party's spokesperson on Financial and Economic Affairs. Peter is also a substitute Member of the Industry, Research and Energy Committee and plays chairs the European Parliamentary Insurance Caucus and the European Parliamentary Financial Services Forum. He is also a senior Member of the US Delegation and regularly attends US delegation meetings to discuss trade issues and financial services with senior members of the U.S Administration and Congress who are active in Financial Affairs.
South West - Glyn Ford
Glyn Ford MEP has represented the South West of England since 1999. He is a strong campaigner on anti-racism, in both the UK and Europe, and has served as Vice-President on the Anti-Racism Intergroup of the European Parliament. Glyn is an expert on East Asia, particularly Japan and North Korea. Since his first election, he has been an active member of the Parliament’s delegation for relations to Japan, serving as its Vice Chairman for five years. An active trade union member, Glyn has supported social legislation and workers' rights throughout Europe.
Wales - Derek Vaughan
Cllr. Derek Vaughan is currently Labour Leader of Neath Port Talbot Council, and is also the Deputy Leader of the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA). Born in Aberfan, he was first elected to Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council in 1995, and was the Cabinet Member for Economic Development before being elected Leader of the Labour Group and Leader of Neath Port Talbot Council in 2004. He is a strong advocate of the links between the Labour Party and the Trade Union movement, having previously been a full time Trade Union official. He is currently a member of the TGWU section of Unite.
West Midlands - Michael Cashman
Michael Cashman represents the constituents of the West Midlands. He tackles a wide range of issues from discrimination to standing up for the West Midlands' ceramics industry. Michael is a member of the European Parliament's Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee and Vice Chair of the Petitions Committee.
Yorkshire and the Humber - Linda McAvan
Linda McAvan was elected to the European Parliament in 1998 and represents her home region of Yorkshire and the Humber. She has worked on European laws that have helped clean up our air, our beaches and our rivers improved anti discrimination protection and guaranteed better rights at work, introduced consumer protection such as cheaper mobile roaming charges and brought millions of investment to rebuild our economy. The main focus of her recent work has been on climate change. Linda has worked to ensure that Yorkshire and the Humber is leading the UK in tackling climate change with its ambitious plans for cleaning up coal fired power stations and heavy industry. Another main area of Linda's work is on overseas development where she has a special interest in maternal health and Fair Trade policies.
SDLP
Head of list: Alban Maginness
Married with a young family, Alban Maginness became involved in thenon-violent protests organised by the Northern Ireland Civil RightsAssociation and joined the SDLP. He has been a member of Belfast CityCouncil since 1985 and was elected as Belfast's first nationalist LordMayor in 1997, pioneering a spirit of partnership politics on BelfastCity Council. Alban was Chairperson of the SDLP from 1985-1991 andparty candidate for the 1992, 1997, 2001 and 2005 Westminsterelections. He was a party delegate at talks throughout the NorthernIreland Peace Process. He was elected to Northern Ireland Assembly in1998 and was successfully re-elected in 2003 and 2007. He held theposition of Chair of the Assembly's Regional Development Committee.Alban is currently the Chair of the SDLP Assembly group and the SDLPSpokesperson on Justice.
