G’day Australia!

It’s great to arrive in Australia to take up the role of British High Commissioner. I feel honoured to have been appointed to the role, and look forward to getting stuck in.

A bit about me. You can see my bio here, but in short I’m a career diplomat – and a mum. I’m here with my husband, Mark, and our three kids aged 17, 14 and 8. I’ve served in countries as diverse as Ghana, Israel, Kenya and the USA in a wide range of diplomatic roles.

My home is Wales – but of course I’m here to represent the whole of the UK! My passions are sports (mainly spectating, though I like to cycle, ski and run and will be taking part in the Sydney ‘City 2 Surf’ in August), travel and music. I am a strong advocate of women in leadership, and of the benefits of a diverse workforce in achieving organisational excellence.

I’ve spent the last four months getting ready for this job, which has meant understanding as much as I can about the UK-Australia relationship before touching down. I’ve met many of my brilliant predecessors – Paul Madden of course, but also Helen Liddell, Alastair Goodlad and Lord (Peter) Carrington – who was High Commissioner to Australia in the 1950s, a good ten years before I was born. He had some fascinating stories to tell. Times have changed though, and you’re more likely to see me riding my bike than a horse to work!

But some of the key diplomatic skills remain the same now as then – and my focus for the first few months will be to listen, to connect, to understand: I have a lot to learn. I believe in inclusive diplomacy – so connecting and engaging with as many people as possible through digital means, but also face-to-face; so I’ll want to balance time in Canberra with getting out into the rest of Australia. I’m planning to get to the cities where the British Government is officially represented by our Consulates and Consulates-General – Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth – within my first six weeks, followed soon after by other key destinations.

We have an election in the UK on 7 May, which will limit some of our public statements and activity during this time. But I’m looking forward to my first public engagements – including speaking at the National Youth Conference in Canberra tonight, and taking part in the Anzac centenary commemorations. Comments or questions welcome – I’ll do my best to answer them. And you can follow me on Twitter – @mennarawlings.