Roberts Zīle
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Roberts Zīle
Dr. Roberts Zīle (born June 20, 1958 in Riga) is a Latvian economist and politician and Member of the European Parliament for the National Alliance, a free market national conservative political party in Latvia and part of the European Conservatives and Reformists.[1] He was formerly vice-president of the now defunct Union for a Europe of Nations group.
Background
Zīle was born in Riga and educated at the Riga 25th high school and graduated from the University of Latvia in 1981, with a degree in economics. Later, in 1997, Zīle gained a PhD. in economics from the Latvian University of Agriculture.[2]
Career
During the 1990s, Zīle was a member of the Riga City Council. He was elected a Deputy of the Saeima from Riga in 1995. In the government of Guntars Krasts, Zīle served as the Minister of Finance from 1997 to 1998. He served as the State Secretary for International Trade and Financial Institutions under Prime Ministers Vilis Krištopans, Andris Šķēle, and Andris Bērziņš. In the government of Einars Repše, he served as the Minister of Communications from 2002 to 2004. Zīle was the Prime Ministerial candidate of the For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK (TB/LNNK) parties for the Latvian parliamentary election, 2006. At the 2009 European Parliament elections, Zīle was the top candidate for the For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK ticket, and was elected. TB/LNNK had been in the Union for Europe of the Nations political grouping the European Parliament, but as the group organically broke up, TB/LNNK joined the new European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), whose largest members include the British Conservative Party, the Czech Civic Democratic Party and the Polish Law and Justice party.
The creation of the ECR brought TB/LNNK and Zīle into the political media spotlight in Britain. Left-wing British politicians including the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, David Miliband and Denis MacShane criticised the activities and views of Zīle and his party. Miliband wrote of TB/LNNK "its members attend commemorations for the Waffen-SS".[3] In a response, Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague demanded an apology to TB/LNNK and the Latvian government from Miliband, describing his remarks as recycling "false Soviet propaganda" and noting that "the majority of parties forming Latvia’s current Government including the Prime Minister’s party, have attended the commemoration of Latvians who fought in the Second World War".[4] Zīle himself wrote a response in the left-wing Guardian newspaper: "I am proud of the new European Conservatives and Reformists group we have formed in the European parliament. Its foundations are strong, and the more bile and mud thrown by the leftwing press and domestic opponents, the more united and resolved we have become".[5]
Zīle sits on the Committee on Transport and Tourism, and is a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group Executive.
References
- ^ "Roberts Zile". London: guardian.co.uk. October 2, 2009. http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/roberts-zile. Retrieved 2010-01-24.
- ^ http://www.europarl.europa.eu/members/public/geoSearch/view.do?id=28615
- ^ David Miliband's speech showed rare passion – this was powerful stuff, The Guardian
- ^ William Hague demands an apology from Miliband after “disgraceful smears.”
- ^ Zile, Roberts (October 2, 2009). "To call us Nazi sympathisers is absurd". The Guardian (London). http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/oct/02/latvia-nazi-second-world-war. Retrieved May 22, 2010.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Jānis Straume |
Chairman of For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK 2006 – |
Incumbent |
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