British Embassy Outsourcing

[stiggy]

What has his color to or family origins have to do with anything ! good luck to him.

Strikes me just like those that put down police etc , first place they run to when it goes wrong is those they are so happy to put down.

Living or travelling abroad does mean that you have some responsibilty for the choice you made.

[mrtoad]

It would be good if they could also have the same level of accountability a person in an eqivalent function in the home public service does.

I agree with pretty much all of your sentiments, and especially the last part. In my dealings with the embassy, I have found it generally to be pretty good - in the past passports and visas being issued has been done with efficiency, although I think the VFS centre that is now outsourced has a long way to go in regards to good customer service and knowledge of the English language. However, there have been a couple of occasions where the total lack of understanding by Thai staff in being able to answer pretty basic questions or trying to give an answer without really knowing the answer is pretty nauseating.

In the end, whoever is the Ambassador or Charge De Affairs in Thailand is, will likely have little or no impact upon the majority of British citizens living here.

[QuickRick]

It will be mainly older people that are coming across as a bit racist here, those that remember the likes of Alf Garnet etc,. . im almost 60 but have accepted the changes, and im married to a dark skinned foreigner,.!, however i always find it a bit amusing when entering the UK through Heathrow and there are usually 2 white passport inspectors out of about 10, from Indian origin to a Muslim in burka,,.

Somebody not so well travelled could easily think the plane has landed at the wrong country !, , but its a sign of the times,.it bothers me not where a persons origin is as long as they can do their job, Unlike Thais i am not afraid of foreigners or prejadiced,.,.But the UK seems to have gone over the top some will say, ,Can you imagine a white foreigner or a black african checking passports at Swampy ?.. not in my lifetime ill bet,

.

[Eff1n2ret]

For those whinging about the British Embassy I would just say make the most of it while you can for the way things are going you will have to deal with the Consulate Generale de EUSSR.

You could almost bet on it within 10 years, if the PIGS don't cause the implosion of the Euro within the next 3 or 4.

[Mossfinn]

if the PIGS don't cause the implosion of the Euro within the next 3 or 4.

Ironic how such a condescending term has materialised for the four countries, particularly as it is British bank lending to Irish banks that has caused the problem in Ireland in the first place.

No idea about Portugal, Spain and Greece, but because of British irresponsibility and because of the Irish banks inability to curtail the Tiger and because they don't want to cause further instability the EU will foist upon Ireland their own economic plans and as such will try and circumvent being 'hoist on their own petard'.

[RAZZELL]

I wish him well...unfortunately I don't know what the Thais will make of it?

Also noted he was a banker

RAZZ

Edited November 21, 2010 by RAZZELL

[PattayaParent]

I wish him well...unfortunately I don't know what the Thais will make of it?

Also noted he was a banker

RAZZ

My mates Thai missus could not accept that all the persons of Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi persuasion were actually British.

Maybe the Thai government officials the new guy will be dealing with will be more 'enlightened'?

[KKK]

Whatever he is he ain't Anglo Saxon and that is what the Thais would be expecting. I think the foreign office should seriously reconsider before appointing him ambassador.

Take a look at http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/news/latest-news/ambassador-appointments1/ just some of the latest Ambassador appointments. All Anglo-Saxon. Did the foreign office run out when it came to Thailand.

Edited December 10, 2010 by KKK

[MSingh]

It's unclear from his CV whether he is actually a naturalised Pakistani (EDIT I don't actually see anywhere that he's of Pakistani descent) immigrant or British through and through, not that it really matters at least not to me (I know many Brits to whom it would matter).

You're saying that he could be British through & through ??

How would you define being British through & through then ??

Question for all that have dived in shouting the Racism Card ( you know who you are ), If you saw a Man called Seamus O Mahoney, what nationality would you say he was initially if he was put in charge of, for example, the Australian Embassy in France ??

[phaethon]

But they'll never bing back "Love thy Neighbour" to the telly in UK, or even "Mind your Language"

I'm still waiting for them to air the rest of the series of Heil Honey, I'm Home

Wouldn't it it be funny if some hacktivist re-routed the UK Embassy's phone to, say, a Microsoft call centre in India... I feel a project coming on

[Moonrakers]

Whatever he is he ain't Anglo Saxon and that is what the Thais would be expecting. I think the foreign office should seriously reconsider before appointing him ambassador.

Take a look at http://www.fco.gov.u...-appointments1/ just some of the latest Ambassador appointments. All Anglo-Saxon. Did the foreign office run out when it came to Thailand.

Anglo-Saxon's were an ancient Germanic tribe you racist muppet.

[MSingh]

Whatever he is he ain't Anglo Saxon and that is what the Thais would be expecting. I think the foreign office should seriously reconsider before appointing him ambassador.

Take a look at http://www.fco.gov.u...-appointments1/ just some of the latest Ambassador appointments. All Anglo-Saxon. Did the foreign office run out when it came to Thailand.

Anglo-Saxon's were an ancient Germanic tribe you racist muppet.

You wouldn't have thought not with his User Name would you ?

[Mossfinn]

Question for all that have dived in shouting the Racism Card ( you know who you are ), If you saw a Man called Seamus O Mahoney, what nationality would you say he was initially if he was put in charge of, for example, the Australian Embassy in France ??

With a name like that and head of the Oz Embassy, I might presume his ancestry was several generation on from Ireland who's Grandfather was transported there with chains around his legs.

Pure speculation mind.............

[SweeneyAgonistes]

Whatever he is he ain't Anglo Saxon and that is what the Thais would be expecting. I think the foreign office should seriously reconsider before appointing him ambassador.

Did you get lost on the way to stormfront?

[harrry]

I agree the Thai people may have a little trouble understanding multiculturalism but this is no reason not to appoint him.

[KKK]

Whatever he is he ain't Anglo Saxon and that is what the Thais would be expecting. I think the foreign office should seriously reconsider before appointing him ambassador.

Take a look at http://www.fco.gov.u...-appointments1/ just some of the latest Ambassador appointments. All Anglo-Saxon. Did the foreign office run out when it came to Thailand.

Anglo-Saxon's were an ancient Germanic tribe you racist muppet.

Wikipedia has it

Historically, indigenous British people were thought to be descended from the varied ethnic stocks that settled there before the 11th century; the Celts, Romans, Anglo-Saxons, Norse and the Normans. Recent genetic studies have shown that more than 50 percent of England's gene pool contains Germanic Y chromosomes,^[

The term "Anglo-Saxon" is sometimes used to refer to peoples descended or associated in some way with the English ethnic group = The conventional view of English origins is that the English are primarily descended from the Anglo-Saxons, Germanic tribes that migrated to Great Britain following the end of the Roman occupation of Britain, with assimilation of later migrants such as the Vikings and Normans.

So yes Brits could be said to be decended from ancient germanic tribes. And what of it? I'm not ashamed of it. It sounds like you may be however.

Wikipedia also has it that the UK is made up of 85.67% White British and that is what the Thais would be expecting. Not a member of the minority Indian, Pakistani whatever ethnic groups. Your comment about racism is completely irrelevant and for your information I don't have a racist bone in my body. My user name just happens to be my initials. Perhaps only racists would see them as something else.

My initial post was to reinforce what others have said about his suitability, from the Thai perspective, not from the British.

Edited December 11, 2010 by KKK

[KKK]

Question for all that have dived in shouting the Racism Card ( you know who you are ), If you saw a Man called Seamus O Mahoney, what nationality would you say he was initially if he was put in charge of, for example, the Australian Embassy in France ??

Please don't confuse nationality with ethnicity

With a name like Seamus O Mahoney it would be pretty obvious he was ethnicly "White Irish" but his work position would make his present nationality "Australian". As to previous nationalities it is impossible to say except one might guess French (the Australian Foreign Office may see an ex-french national an advantage) if he had any at all.

Edited December 11, 2010 by KKK

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Well, the discussion sure has been lifted since I first took issue with it last month.

KKK is especially precious: a whole post of how Thais expect and deserve a white person, followed by a claim not to be racist. Sorry, but that's what racism IS; making any distinction based on race or ethnic background.

[SweeneyAgonistes]

My initial post was to reinforce what others have said about his suitability, from the Thai perspective, not from the British.

Please, it's an anonymous internet forum. At least have the balls to be honest about your racism; trying to pass it off as just doing the Thais a favour is risible.

[SweeneyAgonistes]

Well, the discussion sure has been lifted since I first took issue with it last month.

KKK is especially precious: a whole post of how Thais expect and deserve a white person, followed by a claim not to be racist. Sorry, but that's what racism IS; making any distinction based on race or ethnic background.

But KKK is correct. Suitability for a particular post.

Some might think it is wrong but Thai culture is very different to the west and l am absolutely sure in my mind that Thai officials will smile and shake this guys hand but will not be happy that they didn't get a native Englishman.

99.9% of Thais haven't set foot in England and so have a picture of a white faced populous. My mrs, when we went to UK for hols could not believe the number of ' foreigners ' , she said lot of people on holiday here, l said no, they live here.

The Thais I know are all well aware that Britain is a multicultural country and would not be in the least bit surprised to find someone who wasn't white at the embassy but even if they were shocked by this, it's not the job of the embassy to reinforce any pre-existing prejudice - in Thailand or elsewhere.

[stander]

Well, the discussion sure has been lifted since I first took issue with it last month.

KKK is especially precious: a whole post of how Thais expect and deserve a white person, followed by a claim not to be racist. Sorry, but that's what racism IS; making any distinction based on race or ethnic background.

But KKK is correct. Suitability for a particular post.

Some might think it is wrong but Thai culture is very different to the west and l am absolutely sure in my mind that Thai officials will smile and shake this guys hand but will not be happy that they didn't get a native Englishman.

99.9% of Thais haven't set foot in England and so have a picture of a white faced populous. My mrs, when we went to UK for hols could not believe the number of ' foreigners ' , she said lot of people on holiday here, l said no, they live here.

I agree with you Transam,I remember the first time we arrive at T3 at Heathrow, my wife was actually quite scared as she did not expect to see so many "people of colour".

Now I don't believe for one minute that my wife is a racist, it is just that the concept of the indigenous British people being overrun by multiculturalism is alien to her and most Thais

Edited December 11, 2010 by stander

[SweeneyAgonistes]

What a bizarre question. How many people of Pakistani descent live in China, Japan or Russia? And anyway Britain haven't appointed someone who seemed to be a Pakistani national. But no doubt you think the American's have done wrong by electing as President the whitest black person they could find.

[JetsetBkk]

The Howard Miller Honorary Consul thread got locked after 15 pages. I doubt this one will survive that long.

[stander]

Well, the discussion sure has been lifted since I first took issue with it last month.

KKK is especially precious: a whole post of how Thais expect and deserve a white person, followed by a claim not to be racist. Sorry, but that's what racism IS; making any distinction based on race or ethnic background.

But KKK is correct. Suitability for a particular post.

Some might think it is wrong but Thai culture is very different to the west and l am absolutely sure in my mind that Thai officials will smile and shake this guys hand but will not be happy that they didn't get a native Englishman.

99.9% of Thais haven't set foot in England and so have a picture of a white faced populous. My mrs, when we went to UK for hols could not believe the number of ' foreigners ' , she said lot of people on holiday here, l said no, they live here.

The Thais I know are all well aware that Britain is a multicultural country and would not be in the least bit surprised to find someone who wasn't white at the embassy but even if they were shocked by this, it's not the job of the embassy to reinforce any pre-existing prejudice - in Thailand or elsewhere.

Be honest, would China, Japan or even Russia send a figure of importance that seemed to be a Pakistani national in appearance and name.

Transam you need to be careful, as If you are seen to be asking questions such as these then you can fully expect to be tagged as racist..I have had this thrown at me many times just for my views that the UK has gone too far with multiculturalism.

Edited December 11, 2010 by stander

[stander]

^

I am afraid being proud of British heritage and cultural identity will get you nowhere. It is an all inclusive multicultural society, whether you like it or not.

I just feel very thankful I don't live there

Edited December 11, 2010 by stander

[MiG16]

as a Thai, I couldnt care less what the British Ambassador looks like

or what his name is

however, I would care about what policies he implements, particularly if any that affect me

[stander]

as a Thai, I couldnt care less what the British Ambassador looks like

or what his name is

however, I would care about what policies he implements, particularly if any that affect me

I can't imagine that he will implement any policies which will affect you as a Thai.

[MiG16]

thats my point

[SweeneyAgonistes]

No l don't, that is internal matter for the US populous and nothing to do with Thai perception of an English representative. The US is a new country made up many nationalities, colours, were as England is some what different and has a history same as Thailand.

Are you ฺฺBritish? I suspect not. Britain's - not the same as England's - history is nothing like Thailand's. And, thanks to its shameful history as an imperial power and its rather better history as a haven for refugees, Britain has for many centuries been home to people of all races and religion so there's really nothing wrong with the FCO appointing an Asian. In any case, I seriously doubt black and asian Britons are over-represented in these posts.

Edited December 11, 2010 by SweeneyAgonistes

[StreetCowboy]

No l don't, that is internal matter for the US populous and nothing to do with Thai perception of an English representative. The US is a new country made up many nationalities, colours, were as England is some what different and has a history same as Thailand.

Are you ฺฺBritish? I suspect not. Britain's - not the same as England's - history is nothing like Thailand's. And, thanks to its shameful history as an imperial power and its rather better history as a haven for refugees, Britain has for many centuries been home to people of all races and religion so there's really nothing wrong with the FCO appointing an Asian. In any case, I seriously doubt black and asian Britons are over-represented in these posts.

You are right l am not British, l am English and trace my family back to the 11th century.

Sorry off topic but if it wasn't for England's sense of adventure many former colonies would still be in tents as many countries still are.

Perhaps sadly for us all, the English are as British as the next man. Were the SNP to stand South of the border, I doubt that they would win any seats, but that sometimes is not the impression that whinging Englishmen give.

Anyway, I'm with Transam on this one - far from being shameful, Britain's legacy as an imperial nation is comparable, in my view, to that of Rome and the moral, legal and commercial principles established in the Empire and through its influence form the bedrock of global society. As a member of that society, I feel we owe a debt of gratitude to the people that helped establish the framework for that society.

SC