12th August 2011 Islamabad, Pakistan
Over the four nights this week people across the world have seen images of riots, criminality and looting taking place in the UK. These images have been shocking and sickening for anyone like me who cares about the UK’s reputation. And no less shocking has been the loss of life this week of three young […]
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18th July 2011
Who said the following? – “Ukraine knows that it can count on Britain as its friend in the European Union. We are, and will remain, enthusiastic advocates of Ukraine’s closer integration with the rest of Europe”; and – “It is the responsibility of true friends to speak honestly when they see something which concerns them”. […]
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23rd May 2011
I don’t usually write about my holidays in this blog, and I won’t make an exception now. But by way of illustrating what terrific places there are to go on holiday in the UK, check out the photos below of Lundy Island, in the south west of England, where I recently spent a few days […]
23rd April 2011
It seems that even here in Bolivia there is Royal Wedding fever. I have given a number of interviews recently to television and other media. And there is intense interest in our competition to find a Bolivian couple who are also getting married on 29 April to join us at the Residence to celebrate their […]
20th April 2011
I made two visits recently to the State of Gujarat in Western India, both of which underline the enormous potential for UK companies in India, and the scale of developments here. At the end of March a team from our trade and investment operation in Mumbai travelled to Surat, the second largest city in Gujarat, […]
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19th April 2011
Last week I went down to Romania’s naval base at Constanta to visit the frigate ‘King Ferdinand’ as it makes its final preparations for ‘Operation Unified Protector’, the NATO led operation to enforce the UN arms embargo on Libya. The ‘Ferdinand’ has a distinguished record of service in similar operations, notably ‘Operation Active Endeavour’ – […]
16th February 2011
Last night the Embassy was full of tour operators, agencies and attraction owners from Hungary and the UK, but also from Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Serbia and Slovakia. They had spent the day in a seminar and tailored meetings organised by Visit Britain – the organisation that markets Britain overseas and develops the […]
13th December 2010
It’s not often that we charge people to enter my house. But we make an exception when we host a charity reception in support of the Ukrainian charity EveryChild. Ukraine, like many other countries in Eastern Europe, continues to house large number of children in orphanages. EveryChild, which was set up as the result of […]
10th December 2010
On Thursday 18 November forty people gathered pre-dawn at one of India’s most historic sites, the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, where Mahatma Gandhi lived for many years. The occasion was the beginning of an India-UK Friendship Walk, which my wife Jill has organised with massive support from members of the Association of British Scholars in […]
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24th November 2010 London, UK
I visited Spain last week. I was there to beat the drum for British business, but I also spoke to Spanish business leaders from companies such as Santander and Ferrovial, who have invested in the UK. Watch my video blog to find out more.