Paris, Île-de-France, France
Scottish Civil Servant with a huge interest in international issues. I am currently working in Scottish Government's international network, where I am Deputy Head of our France Office, and beforehand worked in our EU Brussels Office. I also have experience of working in several UK Government departments (Department for International Development, Department for Work and Pensions and HMRC). Academic background in foreign languages and cultures (French & Spanish), sociolinguistics, international relations and security studies with a focus on the former Soviet space.
As Deputy Head for the office, I represent Scotland’s interests in France. I am the lead for providing sociopolitical analysis and reporting to Scottish Government colleagues and Ministers of issues in France, and lead on providing briefing for Ministerial visits to France. I have also built a vast network with government officials, French ministerial cabinets, regions of France, think tanks, businesses, multilateral organisations (UNESCO/OECD) and third sector organisations. I also deputise for the Head of the Office when necessary.
I am Desk Officer for Health, Social Affairs, Social Security Coordination, and International Development. I contribute to Scottish Government’s objective of maintaining a strong presence in Europe and working with European institutions and partners where possible. I provide intelligence and briefing to Scottish Government colleagues and Ministers, as well as seeking and exploring opportunities for engagement and collaboration.
I was part of a leadership team which aimed to examine and promote positive change with how the Employer and Partnership community in DWP Scotland interacts with external stakeholders. As part of this role, I helped organise and deliver workshops across Scotland, promoting an interactive tool for E&P colleagues to record and share interactions with external stakeholders.
Policy and programme lead for UK's efforts to support the end of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in Africa, responsable for our £50m flagship programme. Additionally, I supported the coordination o fthe UK's response to the World Bank Group's Human Capital Index (HCI) and Project. I also supported the work of the Health Service Team, including supporting the Global Health Oversight Group on a cross-government Global Health Security Strategy.
I coordinated incoming EU-exit related commissions from OGDs, ensuring they were recorded correctly and completed on time. I also lead an exercise identifying all EU-exit related OGD policy relationships throughout HMRC and mapping them appropriately. Additionally, I was policy lead for ‘Future’ options for Intellectual Property Right IT systems dealing with infringements at the border.