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Roberts Zīle (born 20 June 1958) is a
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
n economist and politician and
Vice President of the European Parliament There are fourteen vice-presidents of the European Parliament who sit in for the president in presiding over the plenary of the European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and ...
for the
National Alliance National Alliance may refer to: Electoral alliances *National Alliance (Egypt) (2015) * National Alliance (Ireland) (2024 onwards) * National Alliance (Pakistan) (2002-2004) *Nation Alliance (Turkey) (2018-2023) Political parties and organizations ...
, a
free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...
national conservative National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity, communitarianism and the public role of religion. It shares aspects of traditionalist conservatism and social conserva ...
right-wing populist Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right populism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti- elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establishm ...
political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...
in
Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...
. In the seventh term of the
European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the two legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it ...
, he works in the
European Conservatives and Reformists European Conservatives and Reformists may refer to: *European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), a soft Eurosceptic European political party *European Conservatives and Reformists Group The European Conservatives and Reformists ...
group; he is a member of European Conservatives and Reformists Group Executive and a member of the group Bureau. He was formerly vice-president of the now defunct
Union for a Europe of Nations Union for Europe of the Nations (UEN) was a national-conservative, Eurosceptic political group that operated in the European Parliament between 1999 and 2009. At its height in February 2008, it had 44 MEPs. UEN was affiliated with the Alliance ...
group.


Background

Zīle was born in
Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...
on 20 June 1958 and gained his first education in the Riga 25th high school. After graduating in 1976, Zīle continued his education at the
University of Latvia University of Latvia (, shortened ''LU'') is a public research university located in Riga, Latvia. The university was established in 1919. History The University of Latvia, initially named as the Higher School of Latvia () was founded on Se ...
, Faculty of Economics, culminating in a baccalaureate degree in economics in 1981. In 1983, Zīle began part-time studies at the Latvian Institute of Agriculture and Agricultural Economics. During the period between 1992 and 1994, Zīle interned at the
Iowa State University Iowa State University of Science and Technology (Iowa State University, Iowa State, or ISU) is a Public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Ames, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1858 as the Iowa Agricult ...
in the US, at the
Brandon University Brandon University is a university located in the city of Brandon, Manitoba, Canada, with an enrolment of approximately 3,375 (2020) full-time and part-time undergraduate and graduate students. The current location was founded on July 13, 1899, ...
in Canada, and at the
La Trobe University La Trobe University is a public university, public research university based in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. Its main campus is located in the suburb of Bundoora, Victoria, Bundoora. The university was established in 1 ...
in Australia. Finally, in 1997 Zīle gained a doctorate degree of economics from the
Latvian University of Agriculture The Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies (LBTU; ), previously Latvia University of Agriculture (LLU; ), is a university in Jelgava, Latvia, specializing in agricultural science, forestry, food technology and related areas. Histo ...
.


Early career

Zīle began his career in 1980 as editor of the publishing house "Avots". From 1982 until 1986 Zīle was a research fellow, later appointed to head of unit, at the Latvian State Institute of Agrarian Economics. From 1989 to 1993, Zīle was editor of the economics section of the Citizens' Congress of the Republic of Latvia newspaper "Citizen" ("Pilsonis") and the LNNK newspaper "National Independence" ("Nacionālā Neatkarība").


Political career in Latvia

Zīle began his political career in 1990, when he became member of the executive institution of the Latvian Citizens' Congress, the Committee of Latvia. In 1994, Zīle ran in the
Riga City Council Riga City Council () is the government of the city of Riga, the capital of Latvia. Its meeting place is in the Riga Town Hall (''Rīgas rātsnams)'' at the Town Hall Square (''Rātslaukums'') in the very heart of Riga. The Riga City Council con ...
elections from the "For Fatherland and Freedom" party's list. After being a deputy in the Riga City Council, he became an assistant to Ilmārs Dāliņš, a member of the 5th
Saeima The Saeima () is the parliament of the Latvia, Republic of Latvia. It is a unicameral parliament consisting of 100 members who are elected by proportional representation, with seats allocated to political parties which gain at least 5% of the p ...
(Parliament of Latvia). In 1995, Zīle was himself elected in the 6th Saeima from the "For Fatherland and Freedom" list. He worked there as a member of the European Affairs committee and the Budget and Finance committee. Later, Zīle became chairman of the Budget and Finance committee. In February 1997, Zīle became Minister of Finance of Latvia under Prime Minister
Andris Šķēle Andris Šķēle (born 16 January 1958) is a Latvian former politician and business oligarch. He served two terms as Prime Minister of Latvia from 1995 to 1997, and again from 1999 to 2000. Early life Šķēle graduated from the Latvian Agri ...
. The position was extended from July 1997 to November 1998 in the government of Guntars Krasts. In October 1998, Zīle was elected to the 7th Saeima from the recently founded political Union's "For Fatherland and Freedom"/LNNK (TB/LNNK) list. In the 7th Saeima, Zīle continued his work in the European Affairs committee and the Budget and Finance committee. Zīle also served as the Minister of Special Affairs for cooperation with international financial institutions in the government of
Vilis Krištopans Vilis Krištopans (born 13 June 1954) is a Latvian politician who served as the prime minister of Latvia from 26 November 1998 to 15 July 1999. As a prime minister he was a member of the Latvian Way political party. He then left politics and, in ...
from November 1998 to July 1999, in the government of
Andris Šķēle Andris Šķēle (born 16 January 1958) is a Latvian former politician and business oligarch. He served two terms as Prime Minister of Latvia from 1995 to 1997, and again from 1999 to 2000. Early life Šķēle graduated from the Latvian Agri ...
from July 1999 to May 2000, and in the government of Andris Bērziņš from May 2000 to July 2002. In January 2000, Zīle resigned his seat in the Saeima due to a new legislation which banned simultaneous holding of positions of a Minister and a Member of Saeima. In 2002, Zīle was elected to the 8th Saeima from the TB/LNNK list. In November 2002, Zīle resigned from the Parliament, because he was confirmed as a Minister of Transport in the government of Einars Repše. Zīle held this position until March 2004. In July 2006, TB/LNNK nominated Zīle as a candidate for the position of Prime Minister. In December 2006, he was elected chairman of TB/LNNK. In July 2011, upon the creation of the new association of political parties National Alliance "All for Latvia!" - "For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK", Zīle became co-chairman of the association from the TB/LNNK side. In August 2011, he resigned his post as co-chairman, declaring that he wishes to focus his attention on the events in the European Parliament and believes that the leaders of the National Alliance should be based in Latvia.


Political career in the European Parliament

For the sixth term of the European Parliament, Zīle ran in the
2004 European Parliament elections The 2004 European Parliament election was held between 10 and 13 June 2004 in the 25 member states of the European Union, using varying election days according to local custom. The European Parliamental parties could not be voted for, but elect ...
as representative of TB/LNNK. As a result, he was elected in June 2004 and became
Member of the European Parliament A member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been Election, elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the European Coal and S ...
(MEP). As MEP, Zīle joined the nationally conservative
Union for Europe of the Nations Union for Europe of the Nations (UEN) was a national-conservative, Eurosceptic political group that operated in the European Parliament between 1999 and 2009. At its height in February 2008, it had 44 MEPs. UEN was affiliated with the Alliance ...
political group A parliamentary group, parliamentary caucus or political group is a group consisting of members of different political parties or independent politicians with similar ideologies. Some parliamentary systems allow smaller political parties, who a ...
, where he served as vice-president. Zīle worked in the Transport and Tourism committee, the Industry, Research and Energy committee, as well as in the Delegation for Relations with Australia. At the 2009 European Parliament elections, Zīle was the top candidate for the
For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK (, abbreviated to TB/LNNK) was a free-market, national conservative political party in Latvia. In 2011, it dissolved and merged into the National Alliance (Latvia), National Alliance. The party was founded from sm ...
ticket. He was elected and became MEP in June 2009. Due to the departure of several parties, the
Union for Europe of the Nations Union for Europe of the Nations (UEN) was a national-conservative, Eurosceptic political group that operated in the European Parliament between 1999 and 2009. At its height in February 2008, it had 44 MEPs. UEN was affiliated with the Alliance ...
group was terminated. Zīle thereafter joined the British Conservative party's initiated
European Conservatives and Reformists European Conservatives and Reformists may refer to: *European Conservatives and Reformists Party (ECR Party), a soft Eurosceptic European political party *European Conservatives and Reformists Group The European Conservatives and Reformists ...
group (ECR), whose largest members include the
British Conservative Party The Conservative and Unionist Party, commonly the Conservative Party and colloquially known as the Tories, is one of the two main political parties in the United Kingdom, along with the Labour Party. The party sits on the centre-right to right- ...
, the
Czech Czech may refer to: * Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe ** Czech language ** Czechs, the people of the area ** Czech culture ** Czech cuisine * One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus *Czech (surnam ...
Civic Democratic Party and the
Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...
Law and Justice Law and Justice ( , PiS) is a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist and National conservatism, national-conservative List of political parties in Poland, political party in Poland. The party is a member of European Conservatives and Refo ...
party. He is a member of the European Conservatives and Reformists Group Executive. Zīle currently has been working in the European Parliament's Transport and Tourism committee, the Delegation for Relations with the People's Republic of China, and, as a substitute, in the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee. He was also active in the temporary Special Committee on the Financial and Economic Crisis, created in 2009. 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 The secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, also known as the foreign secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, Government of the United Kingdo ...
,
David Miliband David Wright Miliband (born 15 July 1965) is the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the International Rescue Committee and a former British Labour Party politician. He was the Foreign Secretary from 2007 to 2010 and the Member o ...
and
Denis MacShane Denis MacShane (born Josef Denis Matyjaszek; 21 May 1948) is a British former politician, author, commentator and convicted criminal who served as Minister of State for Europe from 2002 to 2005. He joined the Labour Party in 1970 and has held ...
criticised the activities and views of Zīle and his party. Miliband wrote of TB/LNNK "its members attend commemorations for the Waffen-SS". In a response, Shadow Foreign Secretary
William Hague William Jefferson Hague, Baron Hague of Richmond (born 26 March 1961) is a British politician and life peer who was Leader of the Conservative Party and Leader of the Opposition from 1997 to 2001 and Deputy Leader from 2005 to 2010. He was th ...
demanded an apology to TB/LNNK and the Latvian government from Miliband, describing his remarks as recycling "false
Soviet propaganda Propaganda in the Soviet Union was the practice of state-directed communication aimed at promoting class conflict, proletarian internationalism, the goals of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, and the party itself. The main Soviet cen ...
" 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". Zīle himself wrote a response in the left-wing ''
Guardian Guardian usually refers to: * Legal guardian, a person with the authority and duty to care for the interests of another * ''The Guardian'', a British daily newspaper (The) Guardian(s) may also refer to: Places * Guardian, West Virginia, Unit ...
'' 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".


Academic activities

During his career, Zīle has represented Latvia in a variety of international scientific projects, including programmes developed by the
FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...
,
OECD The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; , OCDE) is an international organization, intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and international trade, wor ...
and the European Commission ACE programme. He has published articles and research papers on property rights and agricultural policy issues in the United States of America, Australia, Norway, Finland, Hungary, Slovakia and Germany.


Political and social activities

Zīle began his political activities as a member of the 18th November Association, Latvian Citizen's Congress and Union "For Fatherland and Freedom". Simultaneously, he was also active in the
Popular Front of Latvia The Popular Front of Latvia () was a political organisation in Latvia in the late 1980s and early 1990s which led Latvia to its independence from the Soviet Union. It was similar to the Popular Front of Estonia and the Sąjūdis movement in Li ...
. He is one of the founders of the Economists Association 2010, which was launched in 1994. The association was created to stimulate economic growth of the national economy and to educate the public on economy issues. The association is widely known due to its connection with the . At the moment, Zīle is a member of the board of the association. Zīle has been a member of the board of the "Foundation for the Development of Public Ideas -- Think!" ("Domā!") since 2012. The objective of the foundation is to offer and introduce new ideas for the political, economic and social life in Latvia and the EU, based on nationally conservative values. Zile has managed or partly managed three of the conferences organized by the foundation - on the unemployment and quality of life of the Latvian youth in May 2012, on conservative values in the modern world in October 2012, and on drivers of energy sector in the Baltics. Zīle has participated in numerous public guest lectures in universities in Latvia on topics related to the economy and politics of the European Union, as well as various conferences on macroeconomic and energy related issues in the European Parliament. Prior to the 9th Saeima elections Zīle developed an extensive economic reform program (sometimes called Zīle's program), designed to prevent a looming real estate crisis and to create a socially equitable tax system in Latvia, which would be oriented towards productive investments. In the European Parliament, Zīle's current agenda is focused on issues related to the EU transport policy, especially the "
Rail Baltica Rail Baltica is an under-construction rail infrastructure project that is intended to integrate the Baltic states in the European rail network. Its purpose is to provide passenger and freight service between participating countries and improve ra ...
" railway project; overcoming the economic crisis; the economic governance of the EU and solving banking issues; energy, especially ensuring the energy independence of the Baltic countries from Russia. In Latvian domestic affairs, Zīle has been continuing activities focused on ensuring the long term macroeconomic stability and overhaul of the tax system. His objective is to prevent the creation of a new banking and real estate bubble based on non-resident activities, as well as to decrease the tax burden on labour, especially low income households and families with children. He also advocates tax increase on capital gains and income from speculative activities with real estate, as well as calls for a state aid for the acquisition of residence for new families.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zile, Roberts 1958 births Living people Politicians from Riga For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK politicians National Alliance (Latvia) politicians Ministers of finance of Latvia Deputies of the 6th Saeima Deputies of the 7th Saeima Deputies of the 8th Saeima For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK MEPs MEPs for Latvia 2004–2009 MEPs for Latvia 2009–2014 MEPs for Latvia 2014–2019 MEPs for Latvia 2019–2024 University of Latvia alumni Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies alumni MEPs for Latvia 2024–2029