18th February 2018 Hanoi, Vietnam
The lunar new year is here. And along with everyone else in Vietnam, I’m celebrating the start of the Year of the Dog. But I’m also thinking this week about another more exotic animal. 17 February is World Pangolin day. And pangolins, whether in Vietnam or elsewhere, badly need our help. Some INGOs estimate that […]
31st October 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
People sometimes ask me which part of my job I enjoy the most, and which is the hardest part. For both questions, the answer often relates to our role in providing consular services to British people overseas. I get a particular sense of professional satisfaction when our consular teams in Hanoi or HCMC are able […]
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28th September 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
Did you know that 28 September is International Right to Know Day? No? Neither did I until one of my colleagues suggested I write a blog. For most civil servants in the UK sharing information with the public is second nature. This is because the UK Parliament passed a Freedom of Information Act in 2000 […]
15th September 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
Today is the UN’s International Day of Democracy (IDD). Time flies – it seems like much less than two years ago that I marked IDD in 2015 by meeting with civil society representatives to discuss the development of civil society in Vietnam. This year, the IDD again represents an opportunity to step back from our daily work […]
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4th July 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
Those of you who follow our UKinVietnam Facebook page closely will know that the UK believes strongly in the value of a vibrant and dynamic media. The media plays a vital role in providing reliable and accurate information, and giving people the opportunity to discuss and debate issues freely. That is why I’m proud of […]
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24th January 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
Happy new year to all of you! That’s something I expect to be saying for most of this month: the buzz of welcoming in a new calendar year will barely have worn off before it’s time to celebrate the lunar new year – the Year of the Rooster – in late January. In the west, […]
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8th August 2016 Hanoi, Vietnam
Last week I was down in the coastal city of Da Nang in central Vietnam, braving the blistering summer heat to celebrate a “first” in UK defence engagement in the Asia Pacific, and with Vietnam. Pacific Partnership (PP) is an annual US-led multinational defence engagement, focusing on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief with allies and […]
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27th May 2016 Hanoi, Vietnam
Last week I was fortunate enough to enjoy an amazing adventure, joining a group of fellow ambassadors on a five-day expedition to the world’s largest cave, Son Doong in Quang Binh province’s Phong Nha-Ke Bang national park. (Although the trip was organised by the Vietnamese government, let me assure readers that I took the time […]
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17th March 2016 Hanoi, Vietnam
Although I sometimes watch cookery contests like Master Chef on TV, I never imagined I would take part in one. But life is full of surprises. And on Monday, instead of chairing the usual start-the-week meeting at the Embassy, I was at Hanoi’s famous Metropole Hotel rolling up my sleeves, putting on an apron, and […]
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13th January 2016 Hanoi, Vietnam
First of all, let me take this opportunity to wish everyone a healthy and successful New Year. “Chuc mung nam moi”! For my first blog of 2016 I thought I’d try something a little different so I invited Nguyen Ngoc Lan, a student at the Hanoi Law University, to share this blog with me. Lan […]