Androulla Vassiliou, Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth
(Cyprus, Liberal)

Background

An experienced lawyer and former legal advisor to Standard Chartered Bank and Bank of Cyprus, Androulla Vassiliou became First Lady of Cyprus in 1988 and later became President of the World Federation of United Nations Associations. Vassiliou formally entered politics in 1996 as a Member of the Cyprus House of Representatives and served on the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Committee on Education and Culture. She later became Vice-President of the European Liberal Democrats and Reform Party and chairperson of the European Liberal Women's Network. Before her appointment to Barroso II, Vassiliou served as European Commissioner for Health for almost two years.

 

Stated objectives on taking office

• To modernise higher education through the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, Marie Curie actions, the Erasmus and the Erasmus Mundus programme;
• To boost youth mobility by launching the ‘Youth on the Move’ initiative (due for launch in July 2010);
• To revise and propose new objectives for the future of higher education policy agenda and for the modernisation of European Vocational and Training (VET) policies;
• To present proposals for the implementation of the new competence on sport as outlined in the Lisbon Treaty, which includes establishing a framework for political cooperation;
• To enhance digital cinema and publish a communication on ‘Opportunities and Challenges for European Cinema in the Digital era’;
• To cooperate with fellow Commissioners on copyright issues in the new Digital Agenda and to support a fair remuneration for the artists.

Members of the Cabinet

Philippe BRUNET, Head of Cabinet
Themis CHRISTOPHIDOU, Deputy Head of Cabinet, Youth on the Move, Lifelong Learning, Vocational Education
Jonathan HILL, Member, Interinstitutional relations
Zenon SEVERIS, Member, Youth policy, Sport policy
Catherine SUSTEK, Member, Cultural policy, Multilingualism
Fabrice COMPTOUR, Member, Innovation and Technology, Universities
George Michael ZISSIMOS, Member, Agenda and communication

Dennis ABBOTT, Spokesperson

 

Main actions to date

• Preparing a Communication on an EU agenda on sport and a proposal for a first EU Sport Programme, which will initially run in 2012-13;
• Proposing the establishment of the ‘European Heritage Label,’ an EU-wide initiative to highlight sites that celebrate and symbolize European integration, ideals and history. The label, which will hopefully come into effect in 2011/2012, would set up an independent panel to select sites that celebrate and symbolize European integration, ideals and history;
• Launching the ‘Spring Day for Europe 2010’ campaign, which will run until 30 June 2010 and intends to introduce European themes into school lessons in innovative and creative ways;
• Announcing a public consultation on the future of cultural and creative industries. The consultation is linked to a new Green Paper that highlights the need to improve access to finance, especially for small businesses, as key to enabling the sector to flourish and to contribute to sustainable and inclusive growth.

What to expect

As Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth, Vassiliou has been given a broad mandate in Barroso II. However, her experience in national politics as well as her brief stint as Commissioner for Health will be invaluable as she faces cross-cutting challenges such as sport, education and culture.