Preceded by Position established Alma mater University of Sussex Education University of Sussex Rank Brigadier Children 3 Role British Politician Allegiance United Kingdom | Political party Conservative Name Geoffrey Orden Service/branch British Army Nationality British Profession Soldier Party Conservative Party | |
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Born 10 April 1945 (age 79)
Waterlooville, Hampshire, United Kingdom ( 1945-04-10 ) Awards Order of the British Empire Profiles | ||
Geoffrey van orden mep progress report on turkish accession
Geoffrey Charles Van Orden MBE (born 10 April 1945) is a British politician and former Army officer. He is currently Member of the European Parliament for the East of England region for the Conservative Party. He was first elected to the European Parliament in 1999.
Contents
- Geoffrey van orden mep progress report on turkish accession
- Geoffrey van orden mep on the outcome of the october 2013 eu summit
- Early life and career
- Defence and security
- Foreign affairs
- Political positions
- Personal life
- References
Geoffrey van orden mep on the outcome of the october 2013 eu summit
Early life and career
Van Orden was born in Waterlooville, Hampshire in 1945. He attended the Mons Officer Cadet School and was commissioned into the Intelligence Corps in 1964. He was promoted Lieutenant in 1966, Captain in 1970, Major in 1977, Lieutenant-Colonel in 1983, Colonel in 1988, and Brigadier in 1991. He was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) aged just 27.
He served worldwide as part of the British Army from 1964 to 1985. In 1985 he became an instructor at the German Armed Forces Staff College in Hamburg (1985–88) and was later the Chief of Staff of the British Army in the British sector of Berlin (1988–90). In 1990 he worked as part of the Assessment Staff for the Joint Intelligence Committee in London. From 1991 to 1994 he served as the Executive Secretary of International Military Staff at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, his final military appointment.
In 1995 he was appointed as a senior official in the European Commission for foreign and security policy issues. He held this post until 1999, when he was elected as a Member of the European Parliament for the Conservative Party.
Defence and security
Following his election to the European Parliament, Van Orden became the Conservatives' spokesman for Defence and Security policy. Van Orden is a member of the European Parliament's Subcommittee on Security and Defence (SEDE) and acts as the ECR coordinator for SEDE.
Foreign affairs
Van Orden is a member of the European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) and has an interest in India, chairing the EU-India Chamber of Commerce and being a founder member of the Friends of India. He is a member of several other "Conservative Friends of ..." groups: India, Sri Lanka, Poland, Turkey and Israel.
During the accession of Bulgaria to the European Union, Van Orden was the rapporteur for Bulgaria in the European Parliament, and regularly reported on the progress of the country with regard to EU membership requirements. His final report in November 2006 confirmed Bulgaria's preparedness to join the EU.
Political positions
Van Orden has said he is a eurosceptic, whilst conflictingly believing in and facilitating the enlargement of the EU. He is opposed to British membership of the euro, the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe and the Treaty of Lisbon. He had long campaigned for the Conservative Party to end their association with the European People's Party in the European Parliament, an aim which was finally achieved in 2009.
He is a member of the Countryside Alliance and the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
Van Orden is a founding president of the New Direction — The Foundation for European Reform think tank and is also a member of the Bow Group think tank.
Personal life
Van Orden is married and has three daughters.