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Paul Madden

British Ambassador to Japan

Part of UK in Australia

1st October 2013

Echuca – paddle steamer capital of the world

HE Paul Madden

Echuca, “paddle steamer capital of the world,” sits on the banks of the Murray River, which divides Victoria and New South Wales.

Most other state borders in Australia are arbitrary straight lines. The town flourished in the 1870s, when wool was shipped down the river from outback sheep stations, to be transferred by rail to Melbourne and thence to export markets in Britain. Nowadays Echuca is primarily a tourist town, made popular by the 1980s TV mini-series “All the Rivers Run”. Visiting on Sunday, we found it a beautiful spot, and another interesting reminder of our shared history.

HE Paul Madden

I had been down in Melbourne swapping notes with various contacts on the challenges facing the new government. I called on Josh Frydenberg – an Oxford tennis “blue” – who has just been appointed Parliamentary Secretary in the Prime Minister’s office, working on regulatory reform.

This is a big priority for Tony Abbott, and an issue where Britain and Australia have useful experiences to swap. I met up with Greg Sheridan, diplomatic editor of The Australian newspaper and doyen of foreign policy writers here, who had just got back from a fact finding trip to Sri Lanka, which will be hosting the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in November.

I also saw Mike Smith, a Brit who runs one of Australia’s top banks, ANZ. He is an expert on Asia and regularly participates in business delegations accompanying Australian prime ministers on their travels in the region.

Melbourne was a mass of colour as fans of the Freemantle Dockers swarmed down Collins Street in their purple shirts.

They were over for the AFL Grand Final. It’s a long way to come from Western Australia, 2,700km away, but they weren’t going to miss the chance to see their team in its first ever final. Sadly for them they were beaten by Hawthorn, last year’s runners up.

About Paul Madden

Paul Madden has been the British Ambassador to Japan from January 2017. He was Additional Director for Asia Pacific at the FCO in 2015.He was British High Commissioner to Australia…

Paul Madden has been the British Ambassador to Japan from January 2017.

He was Additional Director for Asia Pacific at the FCO in 2015.He was British High Commissioner to Australia until February 2015. Prior to this he was British High Commissioner in Singapore from 2007-2011.

A career diplomat, he was previously Managing Director at UK Trade and Investment (2004-2006), responsible for co-ordinating and
implementing international trade development strategies to support
companies across a wide range of business sectors.

As Assistant Director of Information at the Foreign and Commonwealth
Office (2003-2004) he was responsible for public diplomacy policy,
including managing the FCO funding of the BBC World Service, the British
Council and the Chevening Scholarships programme. He led the team
responsible for the award-winning UK pavilion at the Aichi Expo in Japan
2005.

He was Deputy High Commissioner in Singapore from 2000-2003 and has
also served in Washington (1996-2000) and Tokyo (1988-92). Between
1992-96 he worked on EU enlargement and Environmental issues at the FCO
in London.

Before joining FCO he worked at the Department of Trade and Industry
(1980-87) on a range of industrial sectors and trade policy, including
two years as a minister’s Private Secretary.

He has an MA in Economic Geography from Cambridge University, an MBA
from Durham University, studied Japanese at London University’s School
of Oriental and African Studies, and is a Fellow of the Royal
Geographical Society. His first book, Raffles: Lessons in Business
Leadership, was published in 2003.

Married to Sarah, with three children, he was born in 1959, in Devon.

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afl Echuca grand final melbourne steamer