Margaritis Schinas

Margaritis Schinas was born in Thessaloniki in 1962, where he completed his secondary education at the historic 5th Lyceum. He is a graduate of the Law School at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. He continued his postgraduate studies in European Politics at the College of Europe in Bruges as a scholarship holder of the Ministry of Finance, and then in Public Administration and Politics at the London School of Economics.

He is married and father of two children.

Mr Schinas started his professional career at the European Commission in 1990 and is one of the few EU officials to have been appointed as a member of the College of Commissioners, becoming the first Greek Vice-President of the European Commission in the history of the institution. From 2007 to 2009, he was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP), elected with New Democracy.

As a member of the European Parliament and the EPP Group, he participated in the EU-Turkey Joint Parliamentary Committee, the Committee on Budgets and the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs.

Upon completion of his parliamentary work, he returned to the European Commission where he held senior roles. In 2010, Commission President Barroso appointed him Deputy Head of the College of European Policy Advisers and later Director of DG ECFIN in Athens, with responsibility for coordinating the European Commission’s technical assistance framework in Greece.

In 2014, Commission President Juncker appointed him Chief Spokesperson of the European Commission.

He became Vice-President of the European Commission for Promoting the European Way of Life in December 2019. In this capacity, he oversaw EU policies on migration, security, social rights, skills, education, culture, sport, youth, public health, interreligious dialogue and the fight against antisemitism.

On April 4, 2026, Margaritis Schinas assumed the duties of Minister of Rural Development and Food.

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Fri. 15 May 2026 | Opening Ceremony1