Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs

A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy

15th May 2013

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by Nigel Baker

Ambassador to the Holy See (2011-2016)

Together against Religious Persecution

What is it that leading British Sikhs, Jews, Hindus, Roman Catholics, Copts, Buddhists, Presbyterians and Muslims have in common? Too often, we hear about the differences between faiths. But this week we saw an extraordinary coming together for a great cause. On 14 May, Foreign Office Minister Alastair Burt received in person an open letter […]

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14th May 2013

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by Sarah Dickson

Ambassador to Guatemala (June 2012 - June 2015)

Promoting London’s Olympic legacy in Guatemala’s second city, Xela

With the Ambassador in London at the FCO’s Leadership Conference, this is a guest blog from Hector Marroquin, our Prosperity Officer. Last weekend we went to Quetzaltenango, Guatemala’s second city, also known as Xela, to take part in their Cultural and Business Festival, “XelajuEs… Diferente!” This was the second year the Municipality of Xela had […]

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14th May 2013

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by Peter Millett

Ambassador to Libya, Tripoli

Listening: The Secret of Leadership

Much has been written about what makes a good leader. Books have analysed the nature of leadership. Business schools charge high fees to teach leadership skills to up-and-coming middle managers. And leadership gurus  have made fortunes using clever sounding buzz-words such as “demonstrate integrity”, “build trust” and “inspire innovation”. This week I will be at […]

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14th May 2013 London, UK

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by David Lidington

Minister for Europe, London

A startling statistic

A startling statistic – over half the businesses that get help from UK Trade & Investment go on to win additional sales of over £600,000 within two years. The UK’s trade performance is often discussed in the abstract, or at the macroeconomic level. People look at the effect on UK GDP or the balance of […]

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13th May 2013 Ottawa, Canada

Data: the Raw Material of the 21st Century

In today’s ‘Information Age’,  data is the fuel driving innovation in economy and society. Chris Yiu, head of the Digital Government Unit at the Policy Exchange (a leading London think tank) sits on the UK Government’s Data Strategy Board. He was recently in Ottawa to speak at the Data Effect conference about UK initiatives. I […]

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13th May 2013 Harare, Zimbabwe

Catriona Laing

by Catriona Laing

British Ambassador to Zimbabwe

Prime Minister of Denmark visits Helmand PRT

The Prime Minister of Denmark, Helle Thorning-Schmidt has visited Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team in Lashkar Gah for an update on progress. The visit was the premier’s second since she took office in 2011. The Prime Minister expressed her gratitude and pride of the Danish military and civilian staff in Helmand. She stressed that Denmark will […]

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13th May 2013 London, UK

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by David Lidington

Minister for Europe, London

Europe – the big debate

I was in Dublin last week for Europe Day, where I gave a speech about the future of Europe. There is always a certain frisson when a European audience invites a British minister to speak. The late Baroness Thatcher said once that if you believed everything you read about our views on Europe, it would […]

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