6 APRIL 2004
Carmen Kass is making a bid to steer her career off the catwalk and into the corridors of power - the 25-year-old supermodel from Estonia is standing for election in the European Parliament elections in June.

The model, who is the sultry face of Christian Dior's J'adore perfume, plans to bring her native land more into the European picture by encouraging business and low taxation. The former Soviet republic will not progress by being grey and modest and "keeping to the background," she remarks.

Carmen was born in Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. She was 'discovered' by a talent scout while shopping at a supermarket aged just 14, and chose to travel to Italy to try her luck, despite her mother's misgivings. Since then, Carmen has been a hot favourite on both the catwalk and magazine covers for the likes of Calvin Klein, Dior, and Prada.

She will stand for the Parliament as candidate for the right-wing Res Publica party, whose spokesperson says, "Carmen has lots of good ideas."