Joseph Leinen (born 6 April 1948) is a German politician who served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) from 1999 until 2019. He is a member of the Social Democratic Party, part of the Party of European Socialists. He is well known for his environmental and foreign affairs activities, as well as for his support for a Federal Europe. He obtained a law degree in Germany in 1972 and a Certificate of Advanced European Studies from the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium, in 1974. Since 1977 he has worked as a lawyer. Extraparliamentary tasks Leinen became publicly known as a spokesman of the anti-nuclear movement and the peace movement (1980), he was also active for the Bundesverband Bürgerinitiativen Umweltschutz (BBU). He received the nickname "container-Jo" during a demonstration, having climbed a container in order to coordinate protest actions by megaphone. Because of his participation at a demonstration against the Brokdorf Nuclear Power Plant (1981), he was briefly charged with being "guide and ringleader" of a rioting 'mob', however the Federal Constitutional Court eventually dropped charges against him, ruling that there can not be a case of "guide and ringleader" during collective actions. (One of his defenders at the time was Gerhard Schröder, former Chancellor of the BRD.) Party Jo Leinen is a member of the SPD and had different functions: 1977–1979: Europe-Secretary of the youth of the SPD 1981–1985: member of the committee of environment of the SPD 1985–1999: member of the state-directorate of the SPD Saar 1996 until today: member of the Europe-Commission of the SPD Career in national politics From 1985 until 1999, Leinen was a Member of the Landtag of Saarland. He served as State Minister of the Environment in the government of Minister-President Oskar Lafontaine between 1985 and 1994. From 1995, Leinen was also a substitute member of the Committee of the Regions (CoR), invariably standing in for Lafontaine. In 1999, he was also member of the municipal council of Püttlingen/Saar. Member of the European Parliament Leinen was elected Member of the European Parliament without interruption from 1999 until 2019. In parliament, he focused on environment, the development of the unification of the European Union and on foreign affairs. From 2004 he was the President of some key Committees and Delegations in the EP. In 2015, Leinen was one of the Parliament's two rapporteurs (alongside Danuta Hübner) on a set of proposed changes to