Last week, we held the first #BritTalk in my house. In a fascinating presentation, Lord David Triesman, in Havana on business, shared his experiences of working with FIFA and Sepp Blatter when he was Chair of the Football Association. The audience was gripped by Lord Triesman’s tales of sleaze and abuse of power, by his descriptions of systemic corruption and the divisions that lie at the heart of FIFA. With honesty and clarity he answered their questions, including about how exactly people go about asking for bribes and who he thinks should be the next FIFA President. He finished with a radical suggestion about how future World Cups might be run – not by a public body but by a private company. Afterwards, the journalists, students and others who attended discussed FIFAgate and football over a drink on the patio.
Lord Triesman’s talk is exactly what I hope the series of BritTalks (or ‘Charlas Británicas’) will be: challenging, intriguing, thought-provoking. The talks will cover a range of subjects relevant to both Cuba and the UK, subjects that we both have a stake in, things we care about, issues that unite us, things we should talk about. The presenters will be people who have got something interesting to say, an experience to share or a particular perspective we should hear. They will usually be British or Cuban but they might not be. The audience will be anyone who wants to turn up and ask a question.
Themes for future talks include ‘The Caribbean in 2030’, ‘Not just The Beatles! – British music you should be listening to’, ‘Danza Contemporanea and the UK’ and ‘How to Run a Successful Business’. Keep an eye on our Embassy Facebook page for dates and times. I look forward to seeing you there!