10th July 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
There has been much talk of the resources investment boom passing its peak. But in Perth things still feel pretty good. I called on Premier Colin Barnett, re-elected in a handsome victory since my last visit, and some of his ministers. I attended the Australian Gas Technology Conference and Expo and met a number of […]
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4th July 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
London’s Royal Academy will host the largest exhibition of Australian art ever to leave this country from 21 September to 8 December. It includes many of Australia’s finest historic and current works from the leading public institutions. I attended the media launch at the National Gallery in Canberra last week, and gave an interview to […]
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2nd July 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Last week Shadow Foreign Secretary, the Rt Hon Douglas Alexander MP, visited Australia as a guest of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The Australian government arranged the programme for him, but we gave him an in-depth briefing at the High Commission, and I hosted a dinner to discuss foreign policy with MPs, officials […]
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20th June 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Hard hat, heavy boots, pre-dawn start. That’s what a visit to an Australian resources site entails. I’m getting used to it. Australia is a gas superpower, on its way to overtaking Qatar as the world’s largest LNG exporter by the end of the decade. British companies are big players in developing the industry, offshore in […]
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23rd May 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I was familiar with Adelaide’s origins as a planned city of free settlers, but I did not know about its links with London’s famous Reform Club (the starting point for Jules Verne’s “Around the World in 80 Days”) until I attended a fascinating event there organised by the Australia Britain Society while I was back […]
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9th May 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Australian sports minister, Senator Kate Lundy, must be a glutton for punishment. She’s already had to pay a forfeit over her bet with UK sports minister Hugh Robertson about the results at the London Olympics. Now she’s signed up for further wagers with him over the forthcoming Ashes and the Lions’ tour. It was all […]
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5th May 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Defence Minister Stephen Smith launched Australia’s new Defence White Paper in an RAAF hangar in Canberra. They were flanked by Australia’s senior military chiefs and defence officials, against the backdrop of some impressive looking hardware and a military band. The hangar was open to the elements, so we could all […]
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26th April 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The silence of 35,000 people gathered in pre-dawn darkness is a genuinely spine-tingling experience. Every year more and more Australians seem to want to turn out for what is both an annual commemoration of Australia’s war sacrifices and a proud expression of national identity. Before the service, Corporal Ben Roberts-Smith, one of Australia’s four living […]
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24th April 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
This was the interesting title I was asked to talk about by the NSW Community Relations Commission. In Parramatta, unofficial capital of Sydney’s sprawling Western Suburbs, home to some 10% of Australia’s population and the heartland of the “new Australians”, I met young leaders from a range of different communities: Iraqi, Afghanistani, Indian, Coptic Christians […]
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11th February 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I was privileged to chair Foreign Minister Senator Bob Carr’s Magna Carta lecture, an annual event organised by the British High Commission here. Each year we ask a prominent figure to speak about a modern issue relevant to the values enshrined in the 1215 charter, often described as the greatest constitutional document of all time. […]
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