Meglena Kuneva
Meglena Kuneva | |
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Leader of the Bulgaria for Citizens Movement | |
Assumed office December 2011 | |
Preceded by | Position established |
European Commissioner for Consumer Protection | |
In office 1 January 2007 – 9 February 2010 | |
President | José Manuel Barroso |
Preceded by | Markos Kyprianou (Health and Consumer Protection) |
Succeeded by | John Dalli (Health and Consumer Policy) |
Personal details | |
Born | Sofia, Bulgaria | 22 June 1957
Political party | Communist Party (Before 1989)[citation needed] National Movement for Stability and Progress (2001–2011) Bulgaria for Citizens Movement (2011–present) |
Spouse(s) | Andrey Pramov |
Alma mater | Sofia University |
Meglena Shtilianova Kuneva (Bulgarian: Меглена Щилиянова Кунева; born 22 June 1957) is a Bulgarian and EU politician.
Biography[]
Born in Sofia, Kuneva is descended from a Catholic family[1] from the town of Rakovski. She graduated in Law from Sofia University in 1981, and in 1984 she became a Doctor of Law.[citation needed] She worked as a journalist for the Law Programme of the Bulgarian National Radio while being an Assistant Professor at Sofia University. In 1990 she took a job as Senior Legal Advisor at the Council of Ministers and held it until 2001. In the meantime Kuneva specialized in Foreign Affairs and Environmental Law at Georgetown University and the University of Oxford.[2]
In June 2001 she was elected a deputy (Member of Bulgarian Parliament) as a founding member of the Liberal Simeon II National Movement (NDSV) party. In August 2001 Kuneva left her position in the Bulgarian parliament because she was appointed Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and Chief Negotiator of the Republic of Bulgaria with the European Union. She represented the Bulgarian Government in the Convention on the Future of Europe (the European Convention), which designed the EU Constitutional Treaty (the European Constitution).
In May 2002 she was appointed Bulgaria's first in the government of former Tsar Simeon Sakskoburggotski. She held that job even after the 2005 parliamentary elections, when NDSV became a junior partner in the Bulgarian Socialist Party-dominated coalition government of Sergey Stanishev – the only minister of the former cabinet to retain her post.
On 26 October 2006 Kuneva was nominated to be Bulgaria's first member of the European Commission. European Commission President Jose Manuel Durao Barroso assigned her the portfolio of Consumer Protection.[3] Kuneva was decisively approved by the European Parliament on 12 December 2006 with 583 votes "in favour", 21 votes "against" and 28 votes "abstentions". She commenced her mandate as EU Commissioner on 1 January 2007, when Bulgaria officially joined the EU. On 22 January 2007 Meglena Kuneva took an Oath as a European Commissioner at the European Court in Luxembourg. One of her first acts as a European Commissioner was to criticize the iPod and its effects on the youth in Bulgaria.[citation needed]
During her term in office, Kuneva was interested in online data collection (of personal data), profiling and behavioral targeting, and in particular is looking for "enforcing existing regulation on the Internet and to regulate where adequate response to consumer concerns on the issue of data collection".[4]
Other activities[]
- European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), Member[5]
- Vick Foundation, Member of the Jury for the 2008 Bulgarian Novel of the Year[6]
Political positions[]
In October 2013, Kuneva announced her opposition to the ban on land sale to foreigners that was voted by the Bulgarian Parliament.[7] This closely matches the stand the European Commission has taken on the matter.
In December 2013 she said that "she felt more pity than anger toward" Plamen Oresharski because he is not the real decision maker in the Council of Ministers.[8]
Personal life[]
Meglena Kuneva is married to financier Andrey Pramov, a son of the secretary of the Central Committee of the Bulgarian Communist Party (1962–1978), and they have one son – Aleksandar.[2] In addition to her native Bulgarian, she is fluent in English, French, and Russian. Kuneva's hobby is listening to classical music.[9]
See also[]
- Barroso Commission
- Bulgarian membership of the European Union
References[]
- ^ "Who Is Who: Meglena Kuneva – Novinite.com – Sofia News Agency". novinite.com. m3web.bg.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Lilov 2013, p. 65.
- ^ "President Barroso presents the Commissioner designate for Bulgaria". europa.eu.
- ^ Behavioural targeting at the European Consumer Summit, 8 April 2009
- ^ Members European Council on Foreign Relations.
- ^ tress@abv.bg. "2008 Vick Prize Jury:European Commissioner, Professors and a Film Director". www.vickfoundation.com.
- ^ "Ban on Land Sale to Foreigners Serves Bulgaria's Oligarchs – Kuneva – Novinite.com – Sofia News Agency". novinite.com. M3 Web.
- ^ Higgins, Andrew (24 December 2013). "Change Comes Slowly for Bulgaria, Even With E.U. Membership". NYTimes.com.
- ^ Lilov 2013, p. 64.
Bibliography[]
- Lilov, Grigor (2013). Най-богатите българи (1st ed.). Sofia: "Кайлас" ЕООД. ISBN 978-954-92098-9-1.
External links[]
- 1957 births
- Bulgarian European Commissioners
- Consumer rights activists
- Government ministers of Bulgaria
- Living people
- Members of the National Assembly (Bulgaria)
- Politicians from Sofia
- Sofia University alumni
- Alumni of the University of Oxford
- Women European Commissioners
- Women government ministers of Bulgaria
- 21st-century Bulgarian women politicians