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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
25th November 2024
The climate crisis and gender-based violence
8th November 2024
Ecolabels: A Catalyst for Sustainable Food Choices?
4th June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Time to Act: mobilising Catholic networks against sexual violence in conflict
I often have to remind people that I am accredited not to the Vatican City State, but to the Holy See, the governance of the global Catholic Church. As such, this embassy has reach into an extraordinary worldwide network of civil society organisations, religious congregations, diplomats, universities and other components that make up the Catholic […]
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4th June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
British MPs in Canberra discuss Malaria and Foreign Policy
A busy week in Canberra with two separate visits by Members of the House of Commons. The Rt Hon Stephen O’Brien MP, the PM’s Special Representative for the Sahel, was in Australia in his capacity as envoy for the Roll Back Malaria campaign. He is a passionate advocate for the cause and believes there is […]
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4th June 2014 Dublin, Ireland
Poland – 25 amazing years
Even in a year of important anniversaries for Poland, the 25th anniversary of Solidarity’s victory in the elections of 4 June 1989 is a special moment. I arrived in Poland for the first time exactly seven years earlier. I would like to be able to say that I predicted what was to come. But I […]
3rd June 2014 Budapest, Hungary
Out of Office
We had our annual Away Day last week. It’s a day for staying out of your office and meeting with the whole Embassy team to chat about how to improve what we do (and how we do it) in the following year. And then to have some fun relaxing together. This year we had really […]
3rd June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Australia sets scene for London Global Summit on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and I co-hosted a Dialogue on Preventing Sexual Violence in Conflict at Parliament House yesterday. It was well timed, just a week before the London summit from 10-13 June. Julie is one of 14 global champions for the PSVI initiative, including presidents, prime ministers and foreign ministers from a diverse range […]
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3rd June 2014 Chennai, India
The Leadership Conference and Diversity
It’s just 2 weeks since I got back from the annual Leadership Conference which draws together all our Heads of Mission from across the world. It’s the 6th I have attended in a row, which does lead me to reflect on how they’ve evolved. As always, it was extremely useful to hear from and share […]
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2nd June 2014 Paris, France
Her Majesty The Queen in France
We’re three days away from the State Visit of Her Majesty The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. Excitement is rising in the Embassy as we approach it. Why is this visit going to be so special? First of all, because the Queen stands for so much in the relationship between Britain and France.
2nd June 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Reptiles, fairies, conspiracies and cock-ups
Did US spacecraft Apollo 11 really land on the moon in July 1969? Was the death of Diana, Princess of Wales, an accident? Are many world leaders in fact shape-shifting reptilians? Back in August I wrote a blog called “Why Turkey can be confident”. I set out why I was so impressed by this wonderful, welcoming country; and […]
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31st May 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
Bulgaria – The Golden Period in My Life
by Sarah Lampert Sarah Lampert was Third (later Second) Secretary Political in Sofia from 1991 to 1994. Her memories of Bulgaria are of the challenging time of transition between the old guard and the old way of doing things, and the new, but also of the relaxed and sunny atmosphere in Sofia, the stunning Bulgarian […]
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30th May 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Scotland in the UK: Better Together
The referendum on Scottish independence draws ever nearer and the debate is intensifying on both sides. As part of that debate, the UK government has published its 14th paper in a series of analyses, which set out the case for Scotland’s continued Union with the rest of the UK. The focus of this latest paper […]