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
7th September 2018 Vienna, Austria
When Austrian German is the best?
The quote that “Britain and America are two nations divided by a common language” is often attributed to Sir Winston Churchill. A version I hear often in Vienna is “nothing unites Austrians and Germans so much as their divided language” (“nichts verbindet Österreicher und Deutsche so sehr wie ihre geteilte Sprache”. Austrian German is full […]
6th September 2018
Fighting the heartbreaking trade in exotic pets
Seized from the wild when they’re as young as 6 weeks to feed the illegal pet trade, cheetah cubs may look cute but more often than not they don’t survive. ‘Pet’ cheetahs rarely make it past a year. Cheetah populations are plummeting.
Read more on Fighting the heartbreaking trade in exotic pets | Reply (8)
5th September 2018
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Every election is determined by the people who show up
On Sunday 7th October, citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) will get the chance to decide the course of their country for the next four years. The United Kingdom, as a guarantor of the Dayton Peace Agreement and a firm supporter of BiH, has both an obligation and a strong desire to see BiH make […]
Read more on Every election is determined by the people who show up | Reply (1)
5th September 2018 Hanoi
UK education has something for everyone
I’ve only been Ambassador here in Vietnam for a month, but that’s long enough to pick up on the importance of education. As a society with a Confucian history, I can see that study is valued highly, even if things have changed a lot in the millenium since Hanoi’s Temple of Literature first tested scholars against […]
Read more on UK education has something for everyone | Reply
29th August 2018 Delhi, India
Minister Gyimah furthering UK-India Tech Partnership
The UK Minister for Universities, Science, Research and Innovation, Sam Gyimah in his first visit to India showed real enthusiasm in further strengthening the bilateral relationship between the two countries where he was met warmly by his Indian counterpart Dr Harsh Vardhan to co-chair the sixth UK-India Science and Innovation Council. The ministers welcomed the […]
Read more on Minister Gyimah furthering UK-India Tech Partnership | Reply
25th August 2018 Skopje, North Macedonia
Notes upon my arrival in Macedonia
I am not sure whether Macedonia’s Head of Diplomatic Protocol has ever gone to meet a newly arriving Ambassador at the airport and been greeted first by two incredibly excited children who just had to show him all their toys, but he was so professional you would have thought it happens every time! The warmth […]
23rd August 2018 Auckland, New Zealand
A Tour of UK Science Excellence
Some of you may have read in the press earlier this year that a scientific algorithm suggested that Hebden Bridge in West Yorkshire is one of the 7 best places to live in the world. Subjective as that result may be it is also worth noting that Hebden Bridge is pretty much located in the […]
17th August 2018 London,UK
The Government Art Collection
After four fascinating years as ambassador in Romania, I started a new role last month as Head of Soft Power and External Affairs Department in the FCO Communication Directorate. I thought it would be interesting to use this blog to explore the sources of British soft power and its complex relationship to government. Exploration started with our […]
16th August 2018 Stockholm, Sweden
Entering the Era of the Smart Grid & Flexibility Markets
In recent years an array of technological innovations and macroeconomic factors have acted in concert to instigate a complete transformation of the institutional framework and infrastructure that characterises today’s energy system and was initially conceived to support large centralised hydrocarbon energy generation. While the electricity grid (one of the most comprehensive and complicated infrastructure ever […]
Read more on Entering the Era of the Smart Grid & Flexibility Markets | Reply (2)
16th August 2018 Morocco, Rabat
A Year in Morocco
09 August 2018 – A year ago today, my family and I drove into Tarifa to take the ferry across the Straits and begin our adventure in Morocco. As we looked across at the glowering Rif Mountains, we all felt both excited and apprehensive. Although I had been to Morocco three times before, I had […]