29th April 2019
Vienna, Austria
Last week, for the second year running, the British Embassy Vienna took part in the “Vienna Girlsday”. I certainly learned a lot. The aim of the “Girlsday” (in German it is called “Töchtertag” or “daughters’ day”) is to introduce young women to areas of work where women are under-represented. In the UK in 2019 we […]
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6th July 2018
Vienna, Austria
A vast parade of colourful floats and marchers streams around the Ringstrasse in Vienna. More than 200,000 people watch and participate. Towards the front of the spectacle, 200 people – including 15 ambassadors – wave flags, dance and sing, marching behind a banner reading #diplomatsforequality. Welcome to #ViennaPride 2018. The three British Vienna diplomatic missions […]
Read more on #Diplomatsforequality – LGBTI rights are human rights | Reply
29th June 2018
Vienna, Austria
My blog of last September described the “Charles Stewart Conversations”, our regular series of salons here at the British Embassy in Vienna. I wrote how we decided to name the salon after Lord Charles Vane-Stewart, Third Marquess of Londonderry, the first British Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the Emperor of Austria, from 1814-1823 (there’s a […]
Read more on Horse-punching not required: a Viennese salon at the Jewish Museum | Reply
15th June 2018
Vienna, Austria
The guest of honour takes up his place at the podium. The room is hushed. He begins to speak. I was recently invited to attend the award of the honorary citizenship of the city of Vienna to Dr Hugo Portisch, at the splendid Vienna town hall. I had met Dr Portisch briefly when I was […]
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9th May 2018
Vienna, Austria
‘So,’ I say, ‘what do you think you might to do for a career?’ ‘Diplomat,’ says the first young woman. ‘Yeah, diplomat,’ the second says. ‘Us, too,’ say the third and fourth members of the group. As part of #girlsday, or #toechtertag, the British Embassy in Vienna this year invited young women to apply to […]
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23rd March 2018
Vienna, Austria
What are the greatest treasures in Vienna? What can you see? And what is lost? I was privileged recently to attend a press conference at the Jewish Museum in Vienna at which Victor de Waal and museum Director Danielle Spera announced important news which connects the UK to Austria. The de Waal and Ephrussi families […]
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22nd February 2018
Vienna, Austria
A terrorist organisation tries to buy military technology from Country A. But Country A refuses to sell. What is to stop the organisation from going to Country B and buying there? Welcome to the world of multilateral export control regimes. If you don’t know much about export control regimes, don’t worry: not many people do. […]
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16th February 2018
Vienna, Austria
The room is crammed with over 40 financial services companies. In the next few hours, 27 British Fintech companies and 15 Austrian financial institutions will hold over 120 meetings to explore business opportunities. Why did this event work so well? The UK hosts the world’s strongest Fintech ecosystem, closely followed by California and New York. […]
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1st February 2018
Vienna, Austria
Where did the clock come from? How old is it? I would like to know. My Vienna wall-clock, bought broken at the Naschmarkt flea market in Vienna in 1985, was the inspiration for my #ViennaMemories blogs. I treasure it because: It is old. I do not know its date, but surmise the 1950s. I would […]
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10th January 2018
Vienna, Austria
A corrupt official takes an illegal bribe. Why does matter? And if it does matter, what can we do about it? This isn’t just about morality. Research shows that corruption raises the cost of doing business and reduces economic growth. A 1% reduction in corruption perception scores can raise growth by 0.57% in developed economies […]
Read more on How the UK and UNODC are working together to tackle corruption | Reply (1)
