17th December 2025
MAKING LIFE SAFER, FOR EVERYONE
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
9th December 2025
Why We Need Data, Courage, and Community
2nd December 2025
In cybersecurity, there are no limits – only new voices ready to lead
1st April 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
National Dialogue
‘I have been asked a number of times what is the UK position is on National Dialogue. Broadly the answer is YES to a National Dialogue, but only one that is genuine, comprehensive and inclusive. My impression from my recent travels, talking to Sudanese from El Genina to Dongola, is that this is the view […]
1st April 2014 Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
6th ASEAN Youth Forum and ASEAN People’s Forum
Our guest blogger today is Khairunnisa Ashari, who is the Head of International Relations, Brunei Youth Council. Recently, two other colleagues, Faizul H. Ibrahim and Rachel Lai were selected to attend the 6th ASEAN Youth Forum and ASEAN People’s Forum with her and this is what she has to say about their trips to Myanmar. […]
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1st April 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
New Australian High Commissioner in London
The new Australian High Commissioner in London will be moving back into his teenage home when he takes up his position in May. Alexander Downer, whose appointment was announced yesterday, lived at the splendid official residence, Stoke Lodge near Hyde Park, when his father was High Commissioner in London from 1964-72. He went to school […]
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31st March 2014 Houston, USA
The UK harnessing science to “bounce back”
There is a certain buzzword that you hear a lot these days. It’s tossed around by business executives, city managers, weather forecasters, even the odd politician. You feel you should be doing it, but you’re not sure how, or even what it means—resilience. What is resilience? Resilience is the ability to “bounce back” quickly from […]
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31st March 2014 Washington DC, USA
Inherited Identities, New Futures
Diaspora – from Greek, “scattering, dispersion” Identity can be a complicated thing. What does it mean to be part of a diaspora? Do people always carry the old country with them or do they gradually leave it behind? You could read Zadie Smith or Jhumpa Lahiri for some answers. This isn’t a fictional question for me. Over […]
31st March 2014 Paris, France
Climate change is already happening
We’ve just had the publication of a major report by the intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) – the UN authorised panel that is the most authoritative source of scientific advice – dealing with the impact of climate change on human beings and our environment.
31st March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Decoding the English Language: Sense and Sensibility
When I was learning Swedish in London I studied in a language training centre, where post pupils were European business men and women seeking to improve their English. While I tried to do my Swedish homework, my thoughts often strayed to what I could overhear of the classes in the neighbouring rooms. Hearing the teachers […]
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31st March 2014 Geneva, Switzerland
Coming to the surface
It’s hard to convey quite what it’s like to go through a March Council session. The four-week experience is a prolonged assault on the mind, body and soul and while the end of the session is a cause for elation it also feels distinctly post-traumatic. The process of stress-decompression and re-entering normal life needs to […]
31st March 2014 London, UK
A busy two weeks in Turkey
I was glad to get back home to Ankara on Saturday night, tired but happy, after two weeks on the road around Turkey. It had been a fascinating preceding fortnight. Perhaps you would allow me to share the highlights. The first of the two weeks was spent visiting our consulates around the coast in Antalya, […]
31st March 2014 Vientiane, Laos
March 2014 Monthly Snapshot
March 2014 Follow our Embassy’s team through our activities during the past month! Visit to Vientiane Province Our Embassy team made first contact with government officials in Vientiane Province and visited the Nam Ngum 1 Hydropower Plant site. Lord Puttnam’s visit Lord David Puttnam, Oscar-winning film producer and the UK Prime Ministers Trade Envoy for […]