13th November 2013
The 44th Australian Parliament opened yesterday. The diplomatic corps were invited to attend and observe the splendid ceremony. The Australian system is a hybrid: with an elected upper chamber it has some important differences from Westminster; but there are many similarities in procedure. First the members of the House of Representatives were sworn in, either by […]
8th November 2013
The Queen’s Baton has just come through Australia. It is currently travelling around some 70 nations and territories which will be competing at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow starting in July 2014. There are 53 countries in the Commonwealth comprising one third of the world’s population: The Gambia regrettably resigned last month, hopefully temporarily. But at the Games, territories […]
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6th November 2013
I received my CMG from HM The Queen at Buckingham Palace last week. Amidst all the pomp and circumstance you actually feel more nervous than you might expect, as you await those final few moments before you step forward to have the medal ribbon placed around your neck. For some reason the orchestra struck up […]
21st October 2013
The success of the modern Australian economy reflects in part the legal and governance structures flowing from its British heritage, RBA Governor Glenn Stevens told the Australian British Chamber of Commerce at a packed Sydney lunch last week. In a fascinating speech the Governor outlined the history of the economic relationship between the two countries. He noted […]
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15th October 2013
We opened up our Residence to the public this weekend as part of the “Windows on the World” contribution by the Diplomatic community to Canberra’s 100th anniversary celebrations this year. Westminster House has been the residence of British High Commissioners to Australia since 1953. The fifties wasn’t generally acknowledged as one of the great periods […]
11th October 2013
Sailing into Sydney’s magnificent harbour aboard HMS Daring, one of the Royal Navy’s most advanced warships, was a spectacular experience. We were part of a fleet of 40 naval ships from 19 countries, there to celebrate the Royal Australian Navy’s 100th anniversary. I had spent two nights at sea on HMS Daring, and developed a healthy respect […]
1st October 2013
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 […]
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23rd September 2013
It was a great week to take the pulse of Canberra, as Tony Abbot’s new Administration moved into office. Britain’s Deputy National Security Adviser, Hugh Powell, called on members of the PM’s staff and met senior officials across the spectrum of foreign and security policy last week. They told him they looked forward to working […]
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20th September 2013
Woomera – a test range the size of England – was a famous Cold War site, where the Anglo-Australia Joint Project was established in 1946. The name comes from the Aboriginal word for “spear thrower”. At its heyday some 7,000 people lived in a specially constructed town in the middle of the desert, 500 km […]
13th September 2013
The “light blue” uniforms were on full display at the High Commission’s annual Battle of Britain Day commemoration this week. Two Royal Australian Air Force Air Marshals were present – Vice Chief of the Defence Force Mark Binskin and Chief of Air Force Geoff Brown – together with a range of serving military personnel and […]