2nd December 2025
In cybersecurity, there are no limits – only new voices ready to lead
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
14th October 2025
Lost and Found (but mostly lost)
13th October 2025
UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls: September visits to Sarajevo and New York
24th January 2017 Hanoi, Vietnam
My ambitions and commitments for 2017
Happy new year to all of you! That’s something I expect to be saying for most of this month: the buzz of welcoming in a new calendar year will barely have worn off before it’s time to celebrate the lunar new year – the Year of the Rooster – in late January. In the west, […]
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23rd January 2017 London, UK
The UK is number one for inward investment
Now is the time to Invest in GREAT Britain is the clear message that the Department for International Trade set out in their new marketing campaign, launching this week. As the number one destination for inward investment, the campaign will use exciting and little known facts about the UK to demonstrate why so many overseas […]
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23rd January 2017 Geneva, Switzerland
Ensuring a smooth transition in the WTO as we leave the EU
Last week the British Prime Minister Theresa May set out her plan for Britain’s orderly departure from the European Union. Britain’s transition in the WTO is an important and necessary part of this process. Ensuring that goes smoothly is one of the over-riding priorities of the Mission I lead in Geneva. British ministers in fact […]
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22nd January 2017 London, UK
2017: What does it hold for universities and international opportunities?
UK universities have astonishing international networks: it’s not just about recruiting international students to study in the UK, there are nearly 650,000 students on UK courses around the world; half of our research publications are produced with at least one international partner; our universities are working with industry partners in China, India, all over Europe, […]
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20th January 2017 Skopje, North Macedonia
Записи во дневникот 26 август 2027 година
Во висините на Шар Планина воздухот има вкус како шампањ. По пет часови насладување, бевме уморни, но среќни од нашата прошетка. Драго ми е што сум повторно назад во Македонија. Последен пат пешачев на Шар Планина пред девет години. Тогаш, додека служев како британски амбасадор во Скопје прошетките како оваа денес ми беа прибежиште број […]
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20th January 2017 Skopje, North Macedonia
Shënime nga ditari, 26 Gusht 2027
Në malet e larta të Sharit në Maqedoni, ajri ka shije të shampanjës. Pas pesë orëve duke e pirë, ecja jonë sot na raskapiti por na gazmoi. Është e mrekullueshme të rikthehem në Maqedoni. Ka nëntë vjet që nga çasti kur eca në Malin Sharr. Aso kohe, kur isha në postin e Ambasadorit Britanik në […]
20th January 2017 Gaborone, Botswana
A Global Britain: Planning for Brexit
January is traditionally a time for looking ahead and setting out a vision for the year. For some of us, our goals may be simple – more time with family, lose weight, travel or study. For politicians however, sometimes the vision encompasses a major or historic change in international relations. UK Prime Minister Theresa May […]
19th January 2017 London, UKAustria, Vienna
How and why we hosted an Instagram event
A photographer is on his knees, stealthily taking pictures of Ambassador Leigh Turner from behind a Christmas tree. Another stands in the corner, facing the wall. Unnoticed by the other guests, she points her camera at the ceiling and triggers the shutter. Has the Ambassador’s residence in Vienna been infiltrated by foreign agents? Not quite. […]
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19th January 2017 London, UK
This is the decade for UK universities to be bold, brave and ambitious.
This is the decade for UK universities to be bold, brave and ambitious. We are going through the most challenging period since the huge expansion of higher education in the 1960s – and it requires a fundamental rethink to how we operate. That includes everything from our culture and outlook to how we market ourselves […]
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19th January 2017 Vienna, Austria
The wonders of Instagram
Which leading Austrian Instagramer features photographs of a figure in a yellow sou’wester? I was pleased to welcome to the Embassy recently a group of mostly young Austrians with leading accounts on the social media, like Instagram. In instagramese, this would read: Great to welcome @igersvienna to #BritishEmbassy #grambassador. One of the challenges of social […]