Vilija Blinkevičiūtė (born 3 March 1960 in

Linkuva Linkuva (); is a city in the Pakruojis district municipality, Lithuania. It is located north-east of Pakruojis.The town is more than 500 years old. Linkuva is a state-protected urbanistic monument. It is one of the oldest towns of Lithuanian ...

, Lithuania) is a Lithuanian lawyer and politician,

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

and former long-term Minister for Social Security and Labour. Blinkevičiūtė is a member of the

Social Democratic Party of Lithuania The Social Democratic Party of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos socialdemokratų partija, LSDP) is a centre-left and social democratic political party in Lithuania. Founded as an underground Marxist organization in 1896, it is the oldest extant par ...

since 2006.

Early life and education

Blinkevičiūtė was born in

, Lithuania. After graduation with honours from Linkuva Secondary School, she entered Law Faculty of the Vilnius State University, from which she graduated in 1983, having obtained the qualification of

Master of Laws A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

Political career

Since 1983, Blinkevičiūtė has dedicated all her professional life to working in the Ministry of Social Security and Labour until she turned to politics and became a Vice Minister of Social Security and Labour in 1996. In 2000 Blinkevičiūtė was appointed as Minister for Social Security and Labour, first in the government of

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

Rolandas Paksas Rolandas Paksas (; born 10 June 1956) is a Lithuanian politician who was the sixth President of Lithuania from 2003 to 2004. He was previously Prime Minister of Lithuania in 1999 and again from 2000 to 2001, and he also served as Mayor of Vilniu ...

. She remained in the post until 2008. Between 2004 and 2009 Blinkevičiūtė was member of Seimas.

Member of the European Parliament, 2009–present

In 2009 and in

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

Blinkevičiūtė has been elected to the European Parliament, as the representative of the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania. In the European Parliament, she belongs to the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats. Following the 2014 elections, Blinkevičiūtė became a Vice-Chair of the

Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality The Committee on Women's Rights and Gender Equality (FEMM) is a committee of the European Parliament. Membership Chair Vice Chairs *Eugenia Rodríguez Palop *Sylwia Spurek * Elissavet Vozemberg-Vrionidi *Robert Biedroń Members *Regina Bastos ...

(FEMM); she was elected the Chair of the committee in January 2017. In addition, Blinkevičiūtė is a full member of the

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs The Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL) is a committee of the European Parliament. It is responsible for issues of employment and social policy, including labour rights, social security, inclusion, free movement for workers and pensio ...

(EMPL) and of the Delegation to Euronest Parliamentary Assembly, and a substitute member of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee. She also belongs to the Intergroup on Disability and the Intergroup on Children’s Rights and to the Intergroup on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights.Members
European Parliament Intergroup on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights.

Recognition

In 2004 Blinkevičiūtė was bestowed with the Cross of Commander of the

Order for Merits to Lithuania The Order for Merits to Lithuania ( lt, Ordinas Už nuopelnus Lietuvai) is an award, presented by the President of Lithuania, which may be conferred on the citizens of Lithuania and foreign nationals for distinguished services promoting name of Lit ...

References

Profile of Vilija Blinkevičiūtė on the official website of Seimas (Parliament) of the Republic of Lithuania

External links

*

on the official website of the European Parliament {{DEFAULTSORT:Blinkeviciute, Vilija 1960 births Living people Women MEPs for Lithuania Lithuanian jurists MEPs for Lithuania 2009–2014 MEPs for Lithuania 2014–2019 MEPs for Lithuania 2019–2024 People from Linkuva New Union (Social Liberals) politicians Social Democratic Party of Lithuania MEPs Vilnius University alumni Women government ministers of Lithuania Women members of the Seimas 21st-century Lithuanian politicians Members of the Seimas