Siim Kallas
Siim Kallas (Estonian pronunciation: [ˈsiːm ˈkɑlːɑs]; born 2 October 1948) is an Estonian politician, former Prime Minister of Estonia, and former European Commissioner.[1]
Siim Kallas
Neil Kinnock (Administrative Reform)
2 October 1948
Tallinn, Estonia
Estonian Reform Party (since 1994)
Communist Party of the Soviet Union (until 1991)
Kristi Kallas
2, including Kaja
Eduard Alver (grandfather)
In 1987, Kallas was one of the authors of the IME plan for self-managing Estonia with Tiit Made, Edgar Savisaar and Mikk Titma. The plan proposed to make Estonia economically independent from the Soviet Union – adopting a market economy and establishing Estonia’s own currency and tax system.[2] Kallas was elected a member of the Congress of People's Deputies of the Soviet Union in the 1989 Soviet Union legislative election, the first partially free elections in Soviet Union.
After Estonia restored its independence in 1991, Kallas was appointed the President of the Bank of Estonia, at the time only having 11 employees. With a year coherent structure of the bank was set up and on 20 June 1992, Estonia's own currency Kroon was back in circulation after being removed from circulation by the Soviets on 25 March 1941.[2]
Kallas entered politics in 1994 as one of the founders of liberal Estonian Reform Party. The 1995 elections were successful for the new party. Kallas served as the minister of foreign affairs from 1995 to 1996. He later served also as the minister of finance from 1999 to 2002 and the Prime minisiter from 2002 to 2003.
He served as the European Commissioner for Transport between 2010 and 2014. Before that he was the European Commissioner for Administrative Affairs, Audit and Anti-Fraud between 2004 and 2009. In both Barroso Commissions he was also a Vice-President. He was twice appointed the Acting Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs and the Euro in Olli Rehn's stead, from 19 April 2014 to 25 May 2014 while he was on electoral campaign leave for the 2014 elections to the European Parliament and from 1 July 2014 to 16 July 2014 after he took up his seat.[3][4]
After leaving the European Commission, Kallas ran in the Estonian presidential election in 2016, but was not elected. In October 2017, he started as the municipal mayor of Viimsi Parish.[5] His daughter, Kaja Kallas, is the current prime minister of Estonia.