Petros Efthymiou
Encyclopedia
Petros Efthymiou is a Greek
academic and politician of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
. A former minister and MEP
, he is currently (since October 2009) the parliamentary spokesman of his party.
, Thessaly
, and graduated from the Philosophical School of the University of Ioannina
. In 1974, he was a founding member of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
(PASOK). Until 1979, he worked as a teacher of the Greek language in secondary education, as well as a journalist and editor for the party's Agonistis youth magazine and the Sosialistiki Poreia weekly newspaper.
In 1980-85 he was editor-in-chief of the political journal Anti. From 1982 he occupied the post of Special Advisor for Educational Issues at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, before being named Secretary General for Media at the Ministry for the Press and Media for a short term in 1985. From 1986 to 1999, he worked as political editor at the To Vima
daily, and also as a talk show host for the NET
public television network (1994–1999) and as a visiting lecturer at the Panteion University
in 1994-95. In 1998, he was awarded the prize for “Excellency in Journalism”, by the President of the Hellenic Republic, Konstantinos Stefanopoulos.
In 1999, he was elected
to the European Parliament
, serving until 11 April 2000, being a member in the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defense Policy and the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, Media and Sports. Subsequently, and until PASOK's electoral defeat
in March 2004, he occupied the post of Minister of National Education and Religious Affairs. In the same elections, he was for the first time elected as an MP for the Athens B constituency, being subsequently re-elected at the national elections of 16 September 2007 and 4 October 2009
.
He served as Press Spokesman and Secretary of the Relations Sector of PASOK in 2006–2007, as well as coordinator of the Economy Sector in the PASOK Parliamentary Committee (2006) an as a member of the Standing Committees on Social Affairs (2007–2008), Finiancial Affairs, and the Committee for the Constitutional Amendment. He is currently a member of the Standing Committee on Defense and Foreign Affairs as well as member of the Standing Committee on Cultural and Educational Affairs, as well as the spokesman of PASOK's Parliamentary Group since October 2009.
Also he was elected President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (O.S.C.E) ,in Oslo in July 2010.
He is married with the journalist Anastassia Parentzoglou and has two children, named Seline and Paul.
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
academic and politician of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
Panhellenic Socialist Movement
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement , known mostly by its acronym PASOK , is one of the two major political parties in Greece. Founded on 3 September 1974 by Andreas Papandreou, in 1981 PASOK became Greece's first social democratic party to win a majority in parliament.The party is a socialist party...
. A former minister and MEP
Member of the European Parliament
A Member of the European Parliament is a person who has been elected to the European Parliament. The name of MEPs differ in different languages, with terms such as europarliamentarian or eurodeputy being common in Romance language-speaking areas.When the European Parliament was first established,...
, he is currently (since October 2009) the parliamentary spokesman of his party.
Life
He was born in LarissaLarissa
Larissa is the capital and biggest city of the Thessaly region of Greece and capital of the Larissa regional unit. It is a principal agricultural centre and a national transportation hub, linked by road and rail with the port of Volos, the city of Thessaloniki and Athens...
, Thessaly
Thessaly
Thessaly is a traditional geographical region and an administrative region of Greece, comprising most of the ancient region of the same name. Before the Greek Dark Ages, Thessaly was known as Aeolia, and appears thus in Homer's Odyssey....
, and graduated from the Philosophical School of the University of Ioannina
University of Ioannina
The University of Ioannina is a university lying in the plains 5 km southwest of Ioannina, Greece. The campus is linked to the town by Greek National Road 5. It now hosts over 20,000 students in 17 faculties...
. In 1974, he was a founding member of the Panhellenic Socialist Movement
Panhellenic Socialist Movement
The Panhellenic Socialist Movement , known mostly by its acronym PASOK , is one of the two major political parties in Greece. Founded on 3 September 1974 by Andreas Papandreou, in 1981 PASOK became Greece's first social democratic party to win a majority in parliament.The party is a socialist party...
(PASOK). Until 1979, he worked as a teacher of the Greek language in secondary education, as well as a journalist and editor for the party's Agonistis youth magazine and the Sosialistiki Poreia weekly newspaper.
In 1980-85 he was editor-in-chief of the political journal Anti. From 1982 he occupied the post of Special Advisor for Educational Issues at the Ministry of Youth and Sports, before being named Secretary General for Media at the Ministry for the Press and Media for a short term in 1985. From 1986 to 1999, he worked as political editor at the To Vima
To Vima
To Vima is a Greek daily newspaper first published in 1922 by Dimitris Lambrakis, the father of Christos Lambrakis. It is owned by Lambrakis Press Group, a group which also publishes the newspaper Ta Nea, amongst others in its fold of publications...
daily, and also as a talk show host for the NET
New Hellenic Television
New Hellenic Television , branded as NET, is the second television network of the Hellenic Broadcasting Corporation , the public broadcaster of Greece. It is mainly a news and information channel that broadcasts daily newscasts with national and international news, documentaries, talkshows, current...
public television network (1994–1999) and as a visiting lecturer at the Panteion University
Panteion University
The Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences , usually referred to simply as the Panteion University, is a university located in Athens, Greece...
in 1994-95. In 1998, he was awarded the prize for “Excellency in Journalism”, by the President of the Hellenic Republic, Konstantinos Stefanopoulos.
In 1999, he was elected
European Parliament election, 1999
The European Parliament Election, 1999 was a European election for all 626 members of the European Parliament held across the 15 European Union member states on 10, 11 and 13 June 1999. The voter turn-out was generally low, except in Belgium and Luxembourg, where voting is compulsory and where...
to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
, serving until 11 April 2000, being a member in the Committee on Foreign Affairs, Human Rights, Common Security and Defense Policy and the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education, Media and Sports. Subsequently, and until PASOK's electoral defeat
Greek legislative election, 2004
Legislative elections were held in Greece on March 7, 2004. At stake were 300 seats in the Greek Parliament, the Vouli . The New Democracy Party of Kostas Karamanlis won a decisive victory in the elections, ending eleven years of rule by the Panhellenic Socialist Movement .PASOK was led into the...
in March 2004, he occupied the post of Minister of National Education and Religious Affairs. In the same elections, he was for the first time elected as an MP for the Athens B constituency, being subsequently re-elected at the national elections of 16 September 2007 and 4 October 2009
Greek legislative election, 2009
Parliamentary elections were held in Greece on 4 October 2009. An election was not required until September 2011.On 2 September Prime Minister Kostas Karamanlis announced he would request President Karolos Papoulias to dissolve Parliament and call an election...
.
He served as Press Spokesman and Secretary of the Relations Sector of PASOK in 2006–2007, as well as coordinator of the Economy Sector in the PASOK Parliamentary Committee (2006) an as a member of the Standing Committees on Social Affairs (2007–2008), Finiancial Affairs, and the Committee for the Constitutional Amendment. He is currently a member of the Standing Committee on Defense and Foreign Affairs as well as member of the Standing Committee on Cultural and Educational Affairs, as well as the spokesman of PASOK's Parliamentary Group since October 2009.
Also he was elected President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (O.S.C.E) ,in Oslo in July 2010.
He is married with the journalist Anastassia Parentzoglou and has two children, named Seline and Paul.