Swedish Consumers' Association Chief is Appointed New BEUC President

20 May 2014 --- Örjan Brinkman, Chairman of The Swedish Consumers’ Association was elected at the occasion of BEUC’s General Assembly on Friday 16 May as President of The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) and Gerjan Huis in 't Veld, Campaigns & Communications Manager at Consumentenbond (BEUC member in The Netherlands), was elected Vice-President at a meeting of the BEUC General Assembly.

The European Consumer Organisation brings together 40 leading, independent consumer organisations from 30 European countries. BEUC represents its members to the European Union institutions and defends the interests of all Europe’s consumers.

Mr. Brinkman commented: “Becoming BEUC President is a very important task, particularly with EU elections looming and new 5 year tenures beginning for the Commission and Parliament. It will be a crucially important time to ensure consumers’ interests are at the heart of EU policy making. BEUC is well respected and the quality of its work is very good. My priority will be to deepen and develop this heritage with the European consumer interest as the driving force.”

Örjan Brinkman, graduated teaching university in 1978, later working in pre-primary and as a principal. He became Head of Development and later a county manager in adult education, worked as a Marketing Manager and expert on the labour market and later became Secretary General of The Swedish Disability Federation.

Today he is active on the Swedish Board of Agriculture's consumer advisory group, Chemicals Agency's advisory council, Thematic Group on Equality in ESF. These follow roles as a member of the Monitoring Committee and Working Committee of The European Social Fund (Sweden) and the Swedish government's Disability Delegation 2011.

Gerjan Huis in ’t Veld is a member of the BEUC Executive since 2010 and Treasurer in 2012 and 2013. He is educated as a biologist and science writer, with a 33 year career at Consumentenbond. He was editor-in-chief of their magazine Consumentengids. For the previous four years he heads Campaigns & Communications division.