Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

11th June 2013 British High Commission, Kingston, Jamaica

by Syranno Baines

Digital and Communications Officer

David Fitton CMG Is The New British High Commissioner to Jamaica

Mr David Fitton CMG has been appointed British High Commissioner to Jamaica in succession to Mr Howard Drake, who was transferred to another Diplomatic Service appointment. Mr Fitton will take up his appointment during June 2013. Mr Fitton joined the FCO in 1980 and was , until recently , Deputy Head of mission at the […]

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11th June 2013 Dublin, Ireland

Robin Barnett

by Robin Barnett

Former Ambassador to Ireland, Dublin

Anniversaries: why history matters.

It has been another really busy but rewarding week for me. The highlights included reminders of history, a visit to Poznan and further evidence of the potential to increase trade and investment with Poland. The Fourth of June was both the anniversary of the historic 1989 elections in Poland when Solidarity won a remarkable victory […]

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11th June 2013

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by Bruce Bucknell

Former British Deputy High Commissioner Kolkata

Underdog

It’s all over – the European football season ended on 25th May with the Champions league final at Wembley Stadium in north-west London. Wembley was the right place for the final, as Britain gave the “beautiful game” of football to the rest of the world. We set out the rules in 1863 that eventually became […]

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10th June 2013

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by Sarah Dickson

Ambassador to Guatemala (June 2012 - June 2015)

The G8 – scaling up nutrition, the Guatemalan experience

On 8 June the UK hosted a meeting in London, in the context of its presidency of the G8, to discuss nutrition and food security. The Guatemalan Vice President, Roxana Baldetti participated to talk about Guatemala’s experience.  Guatemala is no stranger to the challenges presented by malnutrition, under nutrition and food security. The UN index […]

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10th June 2013 Washington DC, USA

Rosalind Campion portrait

by Rosalind Campion

Counsellor for Global Issues

Keep Proud and Carry On

I participated in my first LGBT Pride when I was about 22. I’d just come out, and I stood nervously on a London street with my friend, watching bright and colourful Pride floats filled with people pass. I gazed shyly at those participating, admiring how they were so comfortable and proud about who they were. I […]

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10th June 2013

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by Nigel Baker

Ambassador to the Holy See (2011-2016)

Pope and PM against Famine and Hunger

Last week I wrote about plans for sustaining global momentum on development and against poverty after 2015. 2015 feels a long way away. And yet in the last few days we have seen, very practically, how government, civil society and faith can come together to make a difference now. Speaking on 5 June, Pope Francis […]

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10th June 2013 Warsaw, Poland

Martin Oxley, Head, UKTI Poland

by Martin Oxley

Director of UKTI Warsaw

Did you know just how easy it is to sell GREAT British Food and Drink to Poland?

There’s lots of people who ask me where can I get a good range of British food and drink brands in Poland. The answer has always been – well nowhere really, unless you want to have a quick look in a range of supermarkets or the odd online shop or deli. You know we’ve fallen […]

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10th June 2013 Geneva, Switzerland

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by Bob Last

Head, UK Mission Political and Human Rights Team

Let there be light

Week two of the June session is never much fun. The end is just a bit too far from sight, there’s a huge amount of fiddly sorting out still to do and almost everyone is in a ratty mood from having spent too much time together. Tempers tend to reach optimal fraying point at about […]

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7th June 2013 Los Angeles, USA

Efforts in the Global Mapping of Carbon Emissions

The Los Angeles S&I team recently visited NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) to meet the Megacities Carbon Project team. The MCP is designed to measure greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in urban areas, starting with Los Angeles (LA). CLARS, a laboratory housing remote-sensing instruments built by JPL researchers, sits atop of Mount Wilson, where it samples […]

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