THE EUROPEAN UNINON
is the world’s largest and most successful collaborative to date. Never before have so many countries sharing such a common bloody history been able to work together so successfully and so fruitfully.

THE EUORPEAN PARLIAMENT
is responsible for Community-wide legislation that member states incorporate into their own national legislation. The Parliament comprises 785 members from 27 countries. Finland has 14 MEPs, of which I am one.

THERE ARE
218 social democrats in the European Parliament. Our group (PSE) is the second largest, and the most politically cohesive.

I am

•    a full member of the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection
•    a full member of the Committee on Petitions
•    a substitute member of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs
•    Vice-Chairman of the Delegation for Relations with Canada, and
•    a substitute member of the Delegation for Relations with the Countries of South Asia and the South Asia Association for Regional Cooperation

until the end of my current term in office in 2009.

In addition, I am involved in the work of a number of unofficial groups, of which the most important are devoted to promoting cooperation between the states around the Baltic, energy policy, and the diverse and sustainable use of natural resources, such as hunting.

I have been Chairman of the Friends of Football group of MEPs since the beginning of 2007.

I keep a vigilant eye on initiatives and drafting work that could be disadvantageous to the Finnish way of life and traditional forms of livelihood, and react to them where appropriate.