Thomas Östros | |
|---|---|
_(Thomas_%25C3%2596stros_cropped).jpg) | |
| Minister for Enterprise and Energy | |
| In office 21 October 2004 – 6 October 2006 | |
| Prime Minister | Göran Persson |
| Preceded by | Leif Pagrotsky |
| Succeeded by | Maud Olofsson |
| Minister for Education | |
| In office 4 October 1998 – 21 October 2004 | |
| Prime Minister | Göran Persson |
| Preceded by | Carl Tham |
| Succeeded by | Leif Pagrotsky |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Björn Thomas Waaranperä (1965-01-26)26 January 1965 (age 60) |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Uppsala University |
Thomas Östros (born 26 January 1965) is aSwedish economist andSocial Democratic politician who has been serving as vice president of theEuropean Investment Bank (EIB) since 2020. Earlier in his career, he held positions as CEO of theSwedish Bankers' Association andExecutive Director for Northern Europe at theInternational Monetary Fund.
Östros was born inMalmberget, as Björn Thomas Waaranperä, the son of anexplosives worker and a housewife. His parents changed theirTornedalian family name toÖstros when they moved fromNorrland toVästerås, because it was easier to pronounce.[1][2]
Östros has alicentiate degree (a graduate degree in theSwedish university system) in economics fromUppsala University.[1]
During his time at university, Östros was an active member of the local branch ofSocial Democratic Students of Sweden. He also served as a councillor in theUppsala Municipal Council.[2]
In 1994 Östros was elected to theRiksdag as a member of parliament. In 1996, he became the Minister for Taxation at the age of 31, under theCabinet of Göran Persson, and later served asMinister for Education from 1998 to 2004. In 2004 he switched posts withLeif Pagrotsky and becameMinister for Enterprise and Energy, a position he held on to until the Social Democratic defeat at thegeneral elections of 2006. Östros was also the deputy chairman of the Riksdag's committee for Industry and Trade from 2006 to 2008.[2][3]
In 2008 Östros was appointed economic policy spokesperson for his party, following a leadership dispute between his predecessorPär Nuder and the newly appointed party chairmanMona Sahlin; a post he was forced to resign from in March 2011,[4] coinciding with the ascension ofHåkan Juholt as chairman, a candidate he refused to endorse or publicly support.[5][6] Östros left the party executive committee at about the same time,[7] and subsequently left the Riksdag in July 2012, having spent a total of 17 years as an MP.[3][8]
It has often been said that former Prime MinisterGöran Persson had a lot of confidence in Östros, and he was mentioned in speculations about possible successors to Persson.[citation needed]
Östros was appointed CEO of thetrade associationSwedish Bankers' Association in 2012,[9] a position he resigned from in 2015,[10] only to later be named executive director for Nordic and Baltic countries at theIMF.[11]
In January 2020, Östros was appointed vice-president of theEuropean Investment Bank (EIB), under the leadership ofWerner Hoyer; he succeededAlexander Stubb.[12] In 2023, thegovernment ofPrime MinisterUlf Kristersson nominated him as Sweden's candidate to succeed Hoyer as president of the EIB;[13] however, the position ultimately went toNadia Calviño.
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