Margrete Helle Auken (born 6 January 1945) is a Danish

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who has been serving as a

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

(MEP) since 2004. She is a member of the

Socialistisk Folkeparti The Green Left ( da, Socialistisk Folkeparti, SF) is a democratic socialist political party in Denmark. It was formerly known in English as the Socialist People's Party, the literal translation of its Danish name. History 1959–1969 The SF ...

, part of the

European Green Party The European Green Party (EGP), also referred to as European Greens, is the European political party that represents national parties from across Europe who share Green values. The European Greens works closely with the Greens–European Fre ...

. She was also formerly a Member of the

Folketing The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands ...

. Auken was educated at the

University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen ( da, Københavns Universitet, KU) is a prestigious public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in ...

and is a ''sognepræst'' (parish priest) at the Frederiksberg Church in the

Church of Denmark The Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Denmark or National Church, sometimes called the Church of Denmark ( da, Folkekirken, literally: "The People's Church" or unofficially da, Den danske folkekirke, literally: "The Danish People's Church"; kl, ...

Political career

Auken was a member of the

Danish parliament The Folketing ( da, Folketinget, ; ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark—Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands a ...

from October 1979 to December 1990 and from September 1994 to June 2004. When she was elected as the sole candidate for SF for the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

in 2004 Auken sparked an uproar in SF by choosing to join the European Green Party – European Free Alliance instead of the European United Left – Nordic Green League without the approval of SF. In parliament, Auken has been serving on the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety since

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. She had previously been a member of the

Committee on Transport and Tourism The Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) is a committee of the European Parliament. Its current chair is the French MEP Karima Delli of the Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance. Research service The Committee is directly supported by ...

(2004-2007), the

Committee on Development The Committee on Development (Commission du développement, DEVE) is a committee of the European Parliament responsible for promoting, implementing and monitoring the development and cooperation policy of the European Union, notably talks with deve ...

(2005-2009). In 2007 she also joined the

Committee on Petitions The Committee on Petitions (PETI) is a permanent committee of the European Parliament to offer a petition process including a web portal to create and admit petitions. Its current chair, elected on 10 July 2019, is Dolors Montserrat, member of the ...

. In addition to her committee assignments, Auken is a member of the delegation for relations with

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

. She is also part of the European Parliament Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals and the European Parliament Intergroup on Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas. Auken was re-elected in

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Personal life

Auken's brother is

Svend Auken Svend Gunnarsen Auken (; 24 May 1943 – 4 August 2009) was a Danish politician. He represented the Social Democrats as a member of the Danish parliament (Folketinget) from 1971 until his death. He was married to journalist and editor Bettina H ...

. She has three children. Her daughter

Ida Auken Ida Margrete Meier Auken (born 22 April 1978, in Frederiksberg) is a Danish politician and member of the Folketing for the Social Democrats political party. She has been a member of parliament since 2007. She was Minister for the Environment of ...

is also a priest and politician, though since 2014 she has been a member of the

Danish Social Liberal Party The Danish Social Liberal Party ( da, Radikale Venstre, , Radical Left) is a social-liberal political party in Denmark. The party was founded as a split from the Venstre Reform Party in 1905. Historically, the centrist party has played a centra ...

, unlike her mother. The younger Auken was Minister of the Environment in the

Cabinet of Helle Thorning-Schmidt I The cabinet of Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt was the cabinet government of Denmark from 3 October 2011 to 3 February 2014. It was a coalition between the Social Democrats, the Danish Social Liberal Party and the Socialist People's Party. ...

References

External links