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Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
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14th October 2025
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8th March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
Say Cheese -Say Blue Murder
Piesek P is on the lookout for GREAT British Cheese in Poland – as he finds it he’ll let you know – just smile, Say Cheese from the Scottish Highlands – Say Blue Murder Best known as the bassist from Blur, Alex James has also become notable for his production of cheese. After his runaway […]
7th March 2014 London, UK
Oonagh Lewis- Schools Outreach to Anthony Gell School
Oonagh Lewis, Project Task Force In January, I visited Anthony Gell School in Derbyshire to give students from Years 9 to 13 a taste of what it is like to work for the FCO. My visit was an extension of the FCO’s outreach to schools programme, which follows hot on the heels of last year’s […]
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7th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
A changing benefit system
On Tuesday 11 March a group of officials from different British government departments will be in Rome to meet their Italian opposite numbers, to explain how our benefits system has changed and how it will work for those coming into the UK. On this topic, it is important to underline that we are not trying […]
7th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
International Women’s Day: ‘women’s economic empowerment and raising girls’ aspirations’.
Upon receiving the Hillary Clinton prize for women, peace and security last month, UK Foreign Secretary Hague said, “I believe that there is no greater strategic prize of the 21st century than the full social, political and economic empowerment of all women everywhere.” [Full speech] Tomorrow is the 103rd International Women’s Day. A great deal […]
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7th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Día Internacional de la Mujer
El 8 de marzo es un día importante para mí. Es el 103 Día Internacional de la Mujer. Estoy segura que muchas personas se preguntarán por qué necesitamos un día para las mujeres. Para mi la respuesta es obvia. Ya ha pasado mucho tiempo desde que este día fue establecido en 1911 pero todavía hay […]
7th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Women’s International Day
The 8 of March is an important day for me. It is the 103rd International Women’s Day. I am sure lots of people would shrug and question why we need a day for women. For me the answer is obvious. We have come a long way since this day was established in 1911 but there […]
7th March 2014 Sofia, Bulgaria
My Bulgarian Town
by John Mitchell John Mitchell is a British person who has been living in a small town in the Sliven region for a few years; he speaks Bulgarian and feels fully integrated in the community. Together with local friends, he regularly visits the town’s café, which quite naturally turns into a generator of many colourful, quirky […]
7th March 2014 Beirut, Lebanon
Inhuman Human Trafficking
In the 21st century we get angry about many small things: traffic jams, power cuts or a failed internet connection. We get plenty of opportunities for all three in Lebanon. But last Friday I joined an event about an issue worth getting really furious about. The Beirut Bar Association launched a Human Rights Institute booklet […]
7th March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
Say Cheese – Say Crowdie
Piesek P is on the lookout for GREAT British Cheese in Poland – as he finds it he’ll let you know – just smile, Say Cheese from the Scottish Highlands – Say Crowdie Beautiful lochs and massive mountains, a pleasant summer and a harsh winter. Cheese making in Scotland belongs to the clans and the […]
7th March 2014 Warsaw, Poland
Lord Livingston’s Central European Diary – Day 5
The chequered flag in sight and Lord Livingston and team in pole position on GREAT opportunities in high growth CEE Moving up a gear and onto the home straight of the GREAT CEE Megamission 2014 – there’s three things which come out of this whistle stop tour of this exciting region: – The region as […]
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