Jonathan Knott

Former British ambassador to Hungary, Budapest

Part of UK in Hungary

14th June 2013 Budapest, Hungary

Run for transparency

Guest blog by Foreign Policy, Justice and Home Affairs and Human Rights Attaché Levente Nyitrai

On Sunday, 9 June I took part in the 20th K&H Budapest Marathon Relay. But it was about so much more than just some fun exercise. Let me run through the details.

20th K&H Budapest Marathon Relay
The start of the marathon relay

At the end of April I received an invitation from the Budapest office of Transparency International (TI) to join their marathon relay team. As a former runner, and a supporter of the work of TI, I was really happy about the initiative and I gladly accepted the offer.

On the sunny morning of the marathon we met up roughly an hour before the start. I warmed up well to make sure I wouldn’t run into problems while competing. Being second in the relay team my task was to complete 5.2 kilometres as fast as possible. I tried my best to run like the wind and finished in just a bit over 23 minutes. The team did really well overall and we agreed we wouldn’t let that be the last time we ran into one another.

20th K&H Budapest Marathon Relay
The moment after crossing the finish line

As in many other countries, people and businesses can at times run up against the lack of transparency in Hungary. Corruption doesn’t only run counter to good morals but it threatens investment and prosperity. There have been some positive developments recently (i.e. Hungary’s accession to Open Government Partnership) but we must all do more to avoid running the risk of losing the battle for greater transparency.

The British Embassy in Budapest has been actively promoting transparency and we certainly do not run short of ideas as to how to do it best. Our involvement in anti-corruption activities runs from sponsoring campaigns, through organising round table discussions to senior management personally taking part in events (i.e. transparency award ceremony, water fight against corruption).

And we will certainly remain dedicated as we know that if we are not careful enough corruption can race ahead of our efforts. So keep an eye out for and join the next large Embassy sponsored TI nationwide anti-corruption campaign (focusing on dancing) that will run all through the summer.

Follow our activities, join our and TI’s programmes and let us all work together to win the race against corruption.

About Jonathan Knott

Jonathan Knott was appointed Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Hungary in March 2011 and arrived in Budapest in February 2012 to take up his post. He left this post on April…

Jonathan Knott was appointed Her Majesty’s Ambassador to
Hungary in March 2011 and arrived in Budapest in February 2012 to take
up his post. He left this post on April 2015.
He has previously held a variety of diplomatic posts at home and
abroad, several with a particular focus on commercial and corporate
finance issues. Jonathan has served in a number of positions in the
British Diplomatic Service since joining in 1988:
Before his appointment was Deputy Head of Mission and Director for Trade and Investment in South Korea from 2008 to 2011.Between 2005 and 2008 he held the post of Deputy Finance Director in the FCO.From 2000 to 2005 he served as First Secretary (Trade, Corporate Affairs and Finance Negotiator) in UKDel OECD Paris.From 1996 to 2000 he was First Secretary (Head of Political/Economic/Aid Section) in Mexico.From 1995 to 1996 he worked in the FCO as Deputy European Correspondent at the EU Directorate.Between 1991 and 1995 he served as Third later Second Secretary (Political / Press and Public Affairs) in Havana.From 1990 to 1991 he was Desk Officer in the FCO’s First Gulf War Emergency Unit.Between 1988 and 1990 he worked as Desk Officer in the FCO in the Anti Drugs Cooperation Department.
Jonathan holds an MA in law from Oxford University, and he is a
member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. He speaks
English, French, Spanish and Hungarian. He is married to Angela Susan
Knott and has one daughter and two sons.

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