31 Facts About Pauline Green

Dame Pauline Green, was born on 8 December 1948 and is a former Labour and Co-operative Member of the European Parliament and former Leader of the Parliamentary Group of the Party of European Socialists.

Pauline Green then changed her position following corruption allegations raised by EC official Paul van Buitenen to call for Jacques Santer to react promptly or be sacked.

Pauline Green started her career as a secretary with a wallpaper manufacturers, before joining the Metropolitan Police on her 21st birthday.

Pauline Green later said that it was working on the beat and witnessing first hand the cycle of those caught in poverty turning to crime that turned her into a socialist.

In 1971, she was working in the West Hampstead division when she met and married PC Paul Pauline Green, resigning from the force in 1974 five months before the birth of her first child.

Paul Pauline Green went on to become Chief Superintendent Pauline Green, borough commander for Brent, and was awarded the Queen's Police Medal in the 1999 New Year's Honours before retiring in 2000.

Whilst staying at home to look after her two children, Pauline Green studied for a degree from the Open University.

Pauline Green then spent two full-time years studying at the LSE for an MSc in Comparative Government.

Pauline Green spent two years between 1982 and 1984 as a lecturer at Barnet College of Further Education, before becoming an assistant teacher at a Special Educational Unit.

Pauline Green visited "most of the 65 local branches" of the constituency of London North and won the seat with a majority of 5,387.

Pauline Green was re-elected to the seat in 1994 with a majority of 48,348.

Pauline Green was elected Leader of the European Parliamentary Labour Party in 1993, beating incumbent leader Glyn Ford.

Pauline Green only served for one year after having been chosen and championed by then Labour leader John Smith to become the new leader of the Parliamentary Group of the PES.

At the 1994 Party Leaders' Conference in Corfu, a "package deal" was agreed to fill the upcoming political posts, and it was agreed that Pauline Green would take the leadership post with strong backing from the Labour contingent.

Pauline Green was strongly involved in the fight against Apartheid in South Africa.

Pauline Green held the position for five years, and was involved at senior levels of policy making in the European Union and member governments.

For six months, the debate raged, with Pauline Green initially supporting the campaign to discharge the budget, but only after a group of specialists that included two senior Socialist MEPs announced that there had been a slight improvement.

The eventual report found that the allegations were correct, and Pauline Green joined those calling for Santer to respond promptly or risk losing his own position.

Pauline Green saw the resignation as an opportunity to improve the running of the EU, in particularly the ability of the parliament to veto the appointment of the next head of the commission.

Pauline Green retained her seat in the 1999 European Parliament election with a reduced majority of 26,477.

Pauline Green was asked by Prime Minister Tony Blair to restand for the Parliamentary Group leadership.

In November 1999, Pauline Green announced that she would be retiring as an MEP to become the first female chief executive of the Co-operative Union, officially taking up the position on New Year's Day 2000.

Pauline Green was caught up in further controversy the following year, regarding the list of voters eligible to decide the Labour candidate for the 2000 London Mayor elections.

Pauline Green already had a track record in the UK co-operative movement.

Pauline Green was welcomed to the movement by the 2000 Congress President, Pat Wheatley, who described her as "someone of great wisdom, true co-operative principles" and "a shining example of 'courage under fire'" for her work with the PES.

The commission was officially launched under chair John Monks on 24 February 2000, with Pauline Green being invited to serve as one of the 12 commissioners.

In October 2002, Pauline Green was elected as the President of ICA Europe, the umbrella body for European co-operatives.

Pauline Green was elected chair of the board of Supporters Direct following her retirement from Co-operatives UK, and elected President of the International Co-operative Alliance.

Pauline Green resigned as President of the ICA, two years before her term ended, as the result of The Co-operative Group cutting its financial support for the ICA.

In 1988, Pauline Green was awarded honorary Doctorates from the University of North London and Middlesex University, and was made Commander of the Order of Honour in 1994 by the President of Greece.

Pauline Green has since been awarded the Grand Golden Cross with Star by the President of the Republic of Austria, and been made Grand Commander of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Cyprus.