Mr. Ioannis PLAKIOTAKIS is a member of the Greek Parliament representing the Lasithi constituency and served as the 9th President of New Democracy.
Born in Athens in 1968 he is the second child of Sifis Plakiotakis and Despo Frangoulis he is married to a Cypriot businesswoman Aphrodite Doritis.
He comes from a family with active participation in social and political affairs of Lasithi and also he is the nephew of ex member of Parliament Michael Chlouveraki.
He studied Biochemical Engineering at the University of Wales and also holds two postgraduate degrees from the University of London and the City University Business School, specializing in Biochemical Engineering and Business Administration.
He fulfilled his military service (1993-1995), as a reserve officer in the Greek Air Force.
He worked for two years (1995-1996), in the transnational European Eurocontrol Agency that controls air traffic and aviation safety throughout Europe.
Once he returned to Greece, he re-opened and managed his family cinematographic company. In this context, in 1997 he renovated and re-opened the historic cinema “Minoa” in the town of Sitia, and founded two other theaters in Neapolis and Ierapetra.
He speaks English and French. Furthermore, he is a member of the Alumni Association of Biochemical Engineering University of London, and the City University Business School.
As a teenager, he had actively engaged in sports and he has been for many years a player and leader of Sitia Sports Club (S.A.O.).
In 1999 he received the responsibility of the position of Vice President at the local administrative council of New Democracy Sitia.
In municipal elections of 1998, he was elected member of the local council in Sitia municipality, with the independent association of John Apidianaki. In this post, he remained until 2002.
In January 2001 by decision of President Kostas Karamanlis, he was appointed member of the Tourism Committee for the political party of New Democracy.
Ioannis Plakiotakis was first elected as an MP in 2004 elections, and he has been re-elected at the same position in the elections of 2007, 2009, May and June 2012 and January and September of 2015.
During the government of Costas Karamanlis, for the period September 2007 until October 2009 he served as Deputy Minister of Defence concerning for the army infrastructure project, meteorology and military sports.
In 2009 by decision of President Antonis Samaras, he was appointed Head of Marine and Island Policy Committee for the political party of New Democracy.
In the regional elections of 2010, he led the regional combination of New Democracy in Crete.
During the government of Antonis Samaras, for the period June 2014 until January 2015 he served as Deputy Minister of Labour, Social Security and Welfare concerning for the management of the European Social Fund and the Community employment programs.
In February 2015, after the proposal of ex-Prime Minister and leader of New Democracy Antonis Samaras, he was unanimously elected General Secretary of the Parliamentary Group.
He was a member of the Standing Parliamentary Committee on Defense and member of the Parliamentary Committee on Production and Trade, Social Affairs and Equality, Youth and Human Rights.
In addition, the period from 2012 to 2014 he was a member of the Greek delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
For the period November 2015 until January 2016 he served as transitional President of the political party New Democracy.
Since February 2016, he is a member of the Greek parliamentary delegation to the NATO Assembly.
Since December 2016, after the proposal of the President of New Democracy Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, he is a member of the evaluation committee of candidates who wish to participate in the electoral party lists and also, he is the Head of Marine and Island Policy Committee of New Democracy.
After the elections of 2019, the Prime Minister, Mr. Kyriakos Mitsotakis, designated him as Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy.