Hannu Takkula

Hannu Aapa Takkula (born 20 November 1963) is an Finnish politician and Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from Finland. He is a member of the Centre Party, part of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.
His work focuses mainly on the areas of International Trade, Agriculture, Education, Culture and Sports. He is a member of the ALDE group (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe) and the Centre Party of Finland, currently leading the Centre Party MEP delegation.
Before attending university, Takkula studied music at the Tampere Conservatory and majored in singing. In 1993 he graduated with a Master of Education from the University of Lapland, going on to teach at Anetjärvi comprehensive school in 1992-1995. In 2016, Takkula completed his doctorate degree in the Faculty of Education of the University of Lapland.
He was elected to the Finnish Parliament and acted as a member on the Education and Culture Committee, Environment Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee until 2004.
Takkula was elected Member of the European Parliament in 2004 and again in 2009. He lost his seat in the 2014 European Parliament election, but returned later in 2015, when Olli Rehn resigned his seat after being elected to the Parliament of Finland.
Currently, Takkula is a member of International Trade Committee INTA, and a substitute in Committees of Regional Development REGI, Agriculture and Rural Development AGRI, and Culture and Education CULT.Since 2008, Takkula has hosted the annual weeklong event Supporting Multilingualism through Language Assessment at the European Parliament together with Vice-President Miguel Angel Martínez.
Takkula enjoys sports, music and culture, and he has written several books and articles. He has two children and five grandchildren.