Christos Papoutsis

Christos Papoutsis (Greek: Χρήστος Παπουτσής) (born April 11, 1953) is a Greek socialist politician, serving as the Minister for Citizen Protection as of September 7, 2010. Prior to his current office he has served as Minister of Mercantile Marine (2000–2001) and European Commissioner^[1] responsible for Energy, EURATOM Supply Agency, SMEs,^[2] Tourism^[3] (1995–1999) and Social Economy. He has also served as the Secretary of the Parliamentary Group and Parliamentary Spokesman for the Panhellenic Socialist Movement (PASOK), the majority party in Greece (2009–2010).

Early life

He was born in Larissa, Greece, in 1953 and later moved to Athens where he studied Economics in the National and Kapodistrian University. Since his university years he became politically active in the democratic movement against dictatorship (junta) and later, after the establishment of democracy in 1974, he became a member of PASOK. He has been president of the Greek National Union of Students (1978–1980), Deputy Secretary of PASOK Youth Movement (1978–1981) and Organisation Policy Secretary of PASOK Central Committee (1982–1985).

Political career

Christos Papoutsis started his political career in 1982. Since then he has held a number of posts within the Panhellenic Socialist Movement, the European Institutions and the Greek Government.

From 1984 to 1995, he was elected Member of the European Parliament^[4] for three consecutive terms (1984, 1989, 1994). During this period he held the positions of Vice-President of the Socialist Group of the European Parliament (1987–1994) and leader of PASOK delegation in the European Parliament (1989–1994).

Along with his mandate in the European Parliament, he served as International Relations Secretary and PASOK Representative at the Socialist International, from 1988 to 1994.

From 1995 to 1999, he was appointed the European Commissioner for Energy under Santer and Marin Presidencies, with an extended portfolio pertaining to Energy, EURATOM Supply Agency, SMEs, Tourism and Social Economy. During his mandate he put forward a series of policies in the areas of Green Energy, Enterprise Policy, Commerce, Tourism and Social Economy.

Since 2000 he is elected consecutively member of the Hellenic Parliament with PASOK (2000, 2004, 2007 and 2009 elections). He was Minister of Mercantile Marine (2000–2001) and Head of the opposition in the municipal council of Athens (2002–2006). Since the re-election of PASOK to power, in October 2009, he holds the office of Secretary of the Parliamentary Group and Parliamentary Spokesman.

During his political career he has been accredited with the following awards:

• Highest Mark of Distinction, with Cross, by the President of the Republic of Austria for his contribution to the accession of Austria to the European Union, (May 18, 1995).
• Highest Mark of Distinction by the President of the Republic of Chile, the Gran Official of the Orden Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins, for his contribution to the restoration of democracy in Chile (April 15, 1998).

Initiatives and Controversies

During his mandate at the European Commission he spearheaded the efforts for the promotion of a series of policies in the fields of Energy, Renewable Energy Sources, SMEs and Tourism. In particular he launched:

• The adoption of the White Papers "An Energy Policy for the European Union"^[5] and "A Strategy and Action Plan for the promotion of Renewable Energy Sources".^[6]
• The formation of the Directive to tackle late payments in commercial transactions,^[7][8] the Recommendation for the promotion of Entrepreneurship^[9] and the Initiative for Growth and Employment.^[10]
• The Green Papers on Commerce and Tourism in conjunction with the first multiannual programme for the strengthening of the Tourism industry and the Communication on combating child sex tourism.

Papoutsis also worked actively towards the agreement reached by the 15 Member States for the deregulation of the internal electricity and natural gas markets and was the Commissioner to conclude the negotiations for the latest nuclear agreement between the European Union and the USA.

Personal life

Christos Papoutsis is married and he has one daughter.

Publications

• European Destinations (Greek: Ευρωπαϊκές Διαδρομές), by Christos Papoutsis, 1994, ISBN 960-236-433-5, [1]
• The Colour of the Future (Greek: Το Χρώμα του Μέλλοντος), by Christos Papoutsis, 1998, ISBN 960-14-0006-0, [2]
• For Europe in the 21st Century (Greek: Για την Ευρώπη του 21ου Αιώνα), by Christos Papoutsis, 1999, ISBN 960-14-0154-7, [3]

References

1. ^ Archives of The European Commission 1995-1999
2. ^ Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)
3. ^ Supporting European tourism
4. ^ European Parliament, Christos Papoutsis profile
5. ^ White Paper on An Energy Policy for the European Union
6. ^ White Paper on A Strategy and Action Plan for the promotion of Renewable Energy Sources
7. ^ A Directive to tackle late payments in commercial transactions
8. ^ Directive 2000/35/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 June 2000 on combating late payment in commercial transactions
9. ^ 97/344/EC: Commission Recommendation of 22 April 1997 on improving and simplifying the business environment for business start-ups
10. ^ The Growth & Employment Initiative of the European Commission

External links

• Official Website of Christos Papoutsis (Greek)
• Official Page of Christos Papoutsis on Facebook
• Official Account of Christos Papoutsis on Twitter
• Official WebTV Channel of Christos Papoutsis on Youtube