Reijo Mauri Matias Pekkarinen (born 6 October 1947, in

Kinnula Kinnula is a municipality of Finland. It is located in the Central Finland region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is . Neighbouring municipalities are Kivijärvi, Lestij ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

) is a Finnish politician, currently serving as a Member of European Parliament for Finland. He is the

Centre Party of Finland The Centre Party ( fi, Suomen Keskusta , ''Kesk''; sv, Centern i Finland), officially the Centre Party of Finland, is an agrarian political party in Finland. Ideologically, the Centre Party is positioned in the centre on the political spect ...

(''Suomen Keskusta'') deputy and secretary, having served in various cabinet position in the Finnish government, including as Minister of Economic Affairs, Minister of Trade and Industry, and Minister of the Interior, as well as a member of parliament.Finpop.net interview, Vincent LeFrancoi

2003, accessed July 3, 2007 He is known by the nickname "The Parliament

Terrier Terrier (from Latin ''terra'', 'earth') is a type of dog originally bred to hunt vermin. A terrier is a dog of any one of many breeds or landraces of the terrier type, which are typically small, wiry, game, and fearless. Terrier breeds vary ...

Early life and education

Pekkarinen was born into a farmer's family in

, to father Niilo Matti Pekkarinen (1922–2004), and mother Hellin Inkeri (née Kinnunen, 1929–2018). He graduated from high school in

Kannus Kannus is a town and municipality of Finland. It is situated in the province of Western Finland and is part of the Central Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of , of which is water. The population den ...

in 1968. Pekkarinen first became interested in politics as a student at the

University of Jyväskylä The University of Jyväskylä ( fi, Jyväskylän yliopisto) is a research university in Jyväskylä, Finland. It has its origins in the first Finnish-speaking Teacher Training College (the so-called Teacher Seminary), founded in 1863. Ar ...

in the late 1960s and early 1970s, from where he graduated with a

Master's A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in Social Studies in 1974. He had long held an interest in

economics Economics () is the social science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services. Economics focuses on the behaviour and intera ...

and

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

and began to take part in party politics at the age of 24.

Career

Early political career & Minister of the Interior

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the ''International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the ''Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the song ...

Pekkarinen was first elected to parliament in the Central Finland constituency, after which he was re-elected with an increased vote share in

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to Internet protocol suite, TCP/IP is officially completed (this is consid ...

1987 File:1987 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsizes after leaving the Port of Zeebrugge in Belgium, killing 193; Northwest Airlines Flight 255 crashes after takeoff from Detroit Metropolitan Airport, k ...

, and

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Phil ...

. After the 1991 election victory he was named Minister of the Interior in the

Aho Cabinet The cabinet of Esko Aho was the 65th government of Finland. The cabinet existed from 26 April 1991 to 13 April 1995. The cabinet’s Prime Minister was Esko Aho. The Aho Government started its term when Finland was in the midst of its history’s ...

. He served in this position for a full parliamentary term until 1995, when Aho's Centre Party lost the parliamentary majority to the Social Democrats in the

parliamentary elections A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

Minister of Trade and Industry

In 2003, Pekkarinen was named the Minister of Trade and Industry in the

Jäätteenmäki Cabinet The cabinet of Anneli Jäätteenmäki was the 68th government of Finland. The cabinet was in office from 17 April 2003 to 24 June 2003. It was a majority coalition government headed by Prime Minister Anneli Jäätteenmäki. The cabinet was formed ...

. As new Minister of Trade and Industry, he stated his goal to "promote entrepreneurship and economic growth and thus contribute to diminishing unemployment, ndto tackle large issues in the field of energy policy such as the carbon dioxide emissions trade between companies in the EU and the building a new nuclear power reactor in Finland", and has also stated an interest in preserving good relations with

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. In 2008 his title was changed to Minister of Economic Affairs, a position in which he remained until 2011. During his tenure as Minister of Trade and Industry, Pekkarinen was portrayed in the Finnish

political satire Political satire is satire that specializes in gaining entertainment from politics; it has also been used with subversive intent where Political discourse analysis, political speech and dissent are forbidden by a regime, as a method of advancing ...

tv series '' The Autocrats'' in the early 2000s.

Taxes

Mauri Pekkarinen suggested higher food VAT to collect more taxes in January 2014. Reduction of the food VAT was an election theme in

2007 Finnish parliamentary election Parliamentary elections were held in Finland on 18 March 2007. Early voting was possible from the 7–13 March. The 200 members of the Eduskunta were elected from 15 constituencies. Election themes included a reduction of income tax and VAT on foo ...

. Half of the promised food VAT reduction after the elections was implemented as a reduction of VAT on food served in restaurants. Pekkarinen's suggestion of 2014 did not include a cancellation of the reduced restaurant VAT.

Member of European Parliament

At the 2019 European Parliament Elections Pekkarinen was voted into the European Parliament with 68,487 votes.

Personal life

Pekkanen married his wife Raija in 1972. Together they have four children; two sons and two daughters. In addition to politics, Pekkarinen is an avid athlete, and is a noted

long distance runner Long may refer to: Measurement * Long, characteristic of something of great duration * Long, characteristic of something of great length * Longitude (abbreviation: long.), a geographic coordinate * Longa (music), note value in early music mensur ...

References

External links