Lithuania government picks candidate for EU budget post
(VILNIUS) - Lithuania's government on Monday approved the candidature of its current Finance Minister Algirdas Gediminas Semeta as EU budget chief to replace the Baltic state's president-elect in the post.
"The government approved this candidature and the parliament will begin debate on it today," said Ridas Jasulionis, a spokesman for Lithuania's prime minister.
The EU budget chief post is currently occupied by Lithuania's president-elect Dalia Grybauskaite.
A member of the EU Commission since 2004, Grybauskaite was elected by a landslide last month and will be sworn in as the Baltic nation's first female head of state on July 12.
"Lithuania could -- and it has chances -- to keep the portfolio of financial programming and the budget. Such area of responsibility is really useful for such a tiny country as Lithuania," she told reporters.
Semeta, a 47-year-old economist, previously served as chairman of Lithuania's Securities Commission and in several other senior government and private sector posts.
His candidature must still be endorsed by Lithuania's parliament.
An ex-Soviet republic of 3.4 million, Lithuania joined the European Union and NATO in 2004.
It enjoyed an economic boom on the heels of entry, with 8.9 percent GDP growth in 2007 after 7.8 percent in 2006.
But growth slowed to 3.1 percent in 2008 and Lithuania's central bank has forecast the economy will shrink by 15.6 percent this year. The finance ministry has warned the contraction could plunge to 18.2 percent.
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