2nd December 2025
In cybersecurity, there are no limits – only new voices ready to lead
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
14th October 2025
Lost and Found (but mostly lost)
13th October 2025
UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls: September visits to Sarajevo and New York
24th January 2022
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
An end to BiH’s consequence-free environment
Serving as UK Ambassador to Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) continues to be the most rewarding, challenging, and frustrating experience of my professional career. The challenges and frustrations stem from the near constant turmoil experienced by the country, the destabilising activities and self-interest of many of its leaders, and the failure to improve the quality of […]
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21st January 2022 Kolkata
UK and India celebrate the Living Bridge of Cricket at Eden Gardens
‘Kuunganisha’ in the Swahili language means ‘bonding’. That’s exactly what I witnessed during the ‘Indo British Heritage Cup’ in Kolkata last month. The international cricket match was in its second edition and organised by the London-based Bengal Heritage Foundation (BHF). BHF works closely with British Council Kolkata and the Indo-British Scholars Association (IBSA) to preserve […]
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14th January 2022
My first year in Antananarivo
It is a year this week since I first arrived in Madagascar to head the excellent British Embassy team. So here are 10 of my many fond memories of these past 12 months. Presenting credentials in Madagascar and Comoros. Initially nerve-wracking, trying to ensure I didn’t make mistakes in formal French, but actually enjoyable. President Rajoelina […]
11th January 2022 Geneva, Switzerland
Disarmament blog: looking back and forwards
I was going to use this blog post to write about the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference, which was due to begin in New York on 4 January. Instead, the week before we were due to travel, it became clear that the Omicron situation in New York made it impossible for the UN to host […]
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10th January 2022 Skopje, North Macedonia
How can youth engage in the fight against climate changes and save the planet
Our planet is our home. We all know very well that we need to do something that will save our planet from climate changes and pollution. It’s very important to do this because we don’t have another planet. As I said we live under the same sky,we breathe the same air,we are growing and healing […]
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21st December 2021
Educating girls despite a global pandemic
What have the Prime Minister, Battersea Park and a camel in Pakistan got in common? They’ve all helped further the cause of girls’ education this year. Despite the disastrous impact of COVID-19 on children’s learning across the world, the UK has continued to support the education of the world’s most marginalised children – particularly girls […]
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14th December 2021
Ending preventable deaths and health systems strengthening: launch
In my role, I am surrounded by strong women – leaders, experts and fighters for issues they believe in. It is sobering for me to realise that many of these women would not be where they are today if they had not been able to freely make choices about their own lives and, even more fundamentally, their own […]
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9th December 2021 Geneva
Human Rights Day 2021
On 10 December each year, we celebrate Human Rights Day. To many, this tradition marks a commemoration of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the evolution of the international human rights architecture since 1948. For others, this day marks an annual moment to reflect on the global situation of human rights. […]
9th December 2021 Geneva
Introducing the European Human Rights Ambassadors: A Joint Blog
There is no doubt that COVID-19 has turned our world upside down. It has brought to the fore – and exacerbated – different forms of inequality. This is especially true amongst high-risk and vulnerable groups. Children and young people have been denied their education. Violence against women and LGBTI persons has increased. Democracy and the […]
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1st December 2021
The United Kingdom’s enduring commitment to Bosnia and Herzegovina
Joint message from Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon, FCDO Minister of State and the Prime Minister’s Special Representative on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict, and Baroness Goldie, MoD Minister of State for Defence Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) occupies a special place in the hearts and minds of the United Kingdom. As we have often heard in […]
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