The 25^th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference Riga 28-30 August 2016

This Silver Jubilee edition of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Confernce was an overwhelming success, according to the conference participants. With the unanimous adoption of a resolution on cooperation, education and the labour market in the Baltic Sea Region, the 25 th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference was successfully concluded in Riga on 30 August. The Conference unanimously appointed Carola Veit from Hamburg as new BSPC President. Jörgen Pettersson from the Åland Islands and Prof Dr Jānis Vucāns from Latvia were appointed Vice-Chairmen of the Conference. Ministers and Vice Ministers of Labour and Welfare addressed the Conference On Tuesday morning, the Ministers and Vice Ministers of Labour and Welfare from Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, Norway and Estonia addressed the conference in great detail on labour mobility; trends, causes and solutions of youth unemployment; and support mechanisms, especially for youth. Jānis Reirs, Minister of Welfare from Latvia, Algimanta Pabedinskienė, Minister of Social Security and Labour from Lithuania, Ms Anette Kramme, Vice Minister for Social Security and Labour from Germany, Thor Kleppen Sættem, State Secretary of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs from Norway, and Egle Käärats, Secretary General on Labour and Employment Poliy from Estonia, addressed the parliamentarians. Contributions from BSPC Working Group and Rapporteurs The Vice Chairman of the BSPC Working Group on Sustainable Tourism, Sara Kemetter from the Åland Islands, presented the Working Group’s Mid-way report to the conference participants. The group will elaborate its final report for the 26 th BSPC in Hamburg. The parliamentarians were also updated by the BSPC Rapporteur on Integrated Maritime Policy, Jörgen Pettersson from the Åland Islands, the BSPC Rapporteur on Cultural Affairs Sonja Mandt from Norway, the BSPC Rapporteur on Trafficking in Human Beings Thomas Stritzl from Germay, and the BSPC Rapporteur on Eutrophication Saara-Sofia Sirén from Finland on new developments in their respective fields of action. Their written reports are available on the Rapporteurs’ webpage . More information about the Riga conference.

The President of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference, Prof Dr Jānis Vucāns, opened the 25 th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference on Monday morning. Over 200 parliamentarians, ambassadors of the Baltic Sea States in Latvia, experts and other invited guests were welcomed by the President of the Republic of Latvia, Mr Raimonds Vējonis, and the speaker of the Latvian parliament, Ms Ināra Mūrniece. “Historic events that took place at the end of August 25 years ago” The Latvian President expressed his pride to address the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference at the moment when the organization celebrates the historic events that took place 25 year ago and also led to the founding of the Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference. Mr Vējonis stressed that these events had also brought to an end 50 years of occupation and allowed the three Baltic States to become free and independent once more. The President also pointed out that the region has developed into an economically vibrant, secure and stable area. Thanks to the openness of the markets in the region and the close economic ties that have been established, the Nordic Baltic region has developed fast during the last 25 years and has become one of the most dynamic, IT- and innovation-oriented regions of the world. “Stronger when we are unified in our dedication to cooperation and peace” The Speaker of the Latvian Parliament, Ms Ināra Mūrniece, congratulated the BSPC President and the delegations on the occasion of the BSPC’s Silver Jubilee. She recapitulated that the founding fathers of the Baltic Sea regional cooperation had had a vision of peace. This vision should inspire more than ever to build bridges and tear down walls. She especially welcomed Iceland’s Aalthingi as the oldest parliament in the world and expressed her special thanks to Iceland for putting democracy as the key priority for their Presidency in the Council of the Baltic Sea States. “Aggressive behaviour cannot be tolerated in the 21 st century” After the Report from the BSPC President, in which the BSPC President especially highlighted the BSPC’s thematic focus in 2015/2016, a visit from members of the BSPC Standing Committee to Minsk in April as well as the increasingly comprehensive feedback from the governments to the resolutions of the BSPC, the former Prime Minister of Latvia and current Vice President of the European Commission, Mr Valdis Dombrovskis, emphasized the role of the Baltic Sea Region as a generator of economic prosperity. According to the Vice President, the region is a hub of competitive economies with a bright future. Mr Dombrovskis stressed that the countries in the region had shown political unity in times of crisis, and underlined that aggressive behaviour could not be tolerated in the 21 st century. Conclusion of the first day of the Conference The conference furthermore debated how to develop competitiveness in the Baltic Sea Region by linking education and the labour market, and held a ceremonial session in honour of the BSPC’s Silver Jubilee under the participation of two long-standing BSPC members, Mr Trivimi Velliste from Estonia and Mr Franz Thönnes from Germany, as well as the President of the Nordic Youth Council, Mr Anna Abrahamsson. More information about the Riga conference .

The Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference holds its 25 th annual conference on 28-30 August 2016 in Riga. The Latvian parliament is host of this Silver Jubilee edition under the chairmanship of the BSPC-President and President of the Baltic Assembly Prof. Dr. Jānis Vucāns. Around 200 parliamentarians, ambassadors of the Baltic Sea States in Latvia, experts and other invited guests are expected to participate in the conference. More information about the Riga conference.