9th December 2025
Why We Need Data, Courage, and Community
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
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2nd December 2025
In cybersecurity, there are no limits – only new voices ready to lead
14th October 2025
Lost and Found (but mostly lost)
17th October 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
A year of warm welcomes
It hardly seems possible that it was a year ago this October that Jill and I flew into Provo airport, took a connecting flight to Grand Turk, and 24 hours later were in the charming House of Assembly building for my swearing-in ceremony as the Governor of Turks and Caicos Islands. I said in my […]
17th October 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
What is the UK doing in Bosnia and Herzegovina?
When I arrived in Mostar in July for the in-country stage of my language training, almost the first new phrase I learned was ‘teorija zavjere’, or ‘conspiracy theory’. Rather to my bemusement, my teacher showed me a TV programme about a US system called HAARP which, apparently, was not only responsible for the floods in […]
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17th October 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Visit to Cluj
Cluj-Napoca was not a surprising choice for my first official visit outside Bucharest. And not just because it is Romania’s second city. The thriving British Business Group of Transylvania is testimony to the strength of the British business community, and I was delighted to meet up with its members at a local Indian restaurant. From […]
16th October 2014 Brasilia, Brazil
Nutrition 4 Growth – beating hunger and inequality through business and science*
Another week and another important day to be marked! Today we celebrate the Blog Action Day. Since 2007, every year there is a different theme that bloggers around the world post about. Previous themes included Human Rights, Climate Change and Environment. This year’s theme is inequality and today blogs across over 110 countries will write […]
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16th October 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Blog Action Day 2014: Inequality
The theme of Blog Action Day this year is inequality. Inequality can take many forms. One of the most basic is economic inequality. This is a topical issue at the moment. The publication of Thomas Piketty’s “Capital in the twenty-first century” prompted a wide-ranging debate around his central argument that inequality has increased over the […]
16th October 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Inequality: Injustice in Action
16 October is Blog Action day. And this year’s theme is inequality. So here’s a blog about inequality. Tackling inequality is an important part of UK foreign policy. Two of our six human rights priorities are specifically about inequality, including women’s rights and freedom of religion and belief. For us, the promotion and protection of […]
16th October 2014 Pretoria, South Africa
Tackling Global Inequalities
Today has been labelled ‘Blog Action Day: Let’s Talk About Inequality.’ To mark this occasion I wanted to share some thoughts on what the UK is doing to promote women’s rights and to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights. The promotion and protection of women’s rights is more than a moral obligation. It […]
16th October 2014 Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Inequality
Today is blog action day, which brings together bloggers from different countries, interests and languages to blog about one important global topic on the same day. This year’s theme is inequality. One aspect of inequality is discrimination – allowing people different opportunities or different rights for reasons that are not or should not be relevant. […]
16th October 2014 London, UK
Malala and a Big Tent in Cheltenham
I drove to Cheltenham on Saturday – a four hour round trip worth every mile – to hear a former Archbishop of Canterbury deliver a lecture at the Literature Festival. I was there to support a friend, whose organisation – COEXIST – was staging the event. But in the big tent I was as spellbound […]
16th October 2014 Windhoek, Namibia
Addressing gender violence and inequality in Namibia
“There is one universal truth, applicable to all countries, cultures and communities: violence against women is never acceptable, never excusable, never tolerable.” – U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL BAN KI-MOON Addressing gender violence and inequality in Namibia The promotion and protection of women’s rights is more than a moral obligation. It is enshrined in international human rights law. The […]
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