A Brief Meeting with Brian Davidson, British Ambassador to Thailand

[snoop1130]

A Brief Meeting with Brian Davidson, British Ambassador to Thailand

by CityNews

 

 

On October 7th, Citylife sat down for a few minutes with the new British ambassador, Brian Davidson, who has been in Thailand just over four months, following a posting in China where he was consul general in Shanghai. He follows previous ambassador Mark Kent, who was transferred to another Diplomatic Service appointment.

 

Brian Davidson was born in 1964 and grew up in Northern Ireland. He gained a Bachelor of Arts in Law at Trinity College, Cambridge, then joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1985. Davidson is accompanied by his American husband Scott Chang whom he married in a ceremony in Beijing in 2014.

 

Citylife: What services are now available to British citizens in Chiang Mai, now that there is no Honorary British Consulate office?

 

Ambassador Davidson: Everything is provided here but provided in a different way. It is more efficient now with most services online. The embassy sends staff up here regularly, mainly to continue our many dialogues with local government offices. We have regular conversations with the mayor, the governor, the British community and the few British companies here.

 

Citylife: What are your thoughts regarding the ongoing problems at immigration and are you doing anything to help?

Ambassador Davidson: We have had many meetings with the governor and with immigration. We have offered to show them how our visa application centre in Bangkok works, it could prove to be a good model for them to use.

Citylife: What other issues are you working on up here?

 

Ambassador Davidson: Safety for our citizens is a concern. We have campaigns to encourage our citizens to wear crash helmets, to take out insurance when renting motorcycles or cars. We are also working on encouraging Brits to take out health insurance. I have talked to the National Park about their response when hikers go missing or have accidents. We talk to tour operators to ensure that they are fully prepared for all eventualities as well as to have everyone insured. We have an annual safety campaign in Chiang Mai on Songkran safety as well.

 

Full Story: http://www.chiangmaicitylife.com/news/a-brief-meeting-with-brian-davidson-british-ambassador-to-thailand/

 

-- © Copyright Chiang City News 2016-10-19

[Rob8891]

So in a nutshell, they are doing SFA for us in real terms. Yes, there may be some services online, but far too much required a busy to Bangkok. Truly pathetic.

[cmsally]

That is strange, I wasn't aware they had a visa application centre in Bangkok, I thought they just partnered with VFS like a lot of others.

[MESmith]

15 minutes ago, cmsally said:

That is strange, I wasn't aware they had a visa application centre in Bangkok, I thought they just partnered with VFS like a lot of others.

 

He's probably suggesting they contract out all extensions to agents.  A great help & typical UK solution 

[cmsally]

3 minutes ago, MESmith said:

 

He's probably suggesting they contract out all extensions to agents.  A great help & typical UK solution 

Ah you read my mind ! I wonder what the commission rate is on referrals !

[zaphod reborn]

They need to take these leeches off the government dole.  Make them get real jobs.

[Cuchulainn]

Another useless puppet on a fat cat salary. "Bring the Bentley to the front door, Jizzers. I have a wine and cheese buffet this afternoon".

 

Yawn.

[TheSiemReaper]

Translation: "We're doing nothing for the ordinary citizens of Britain who pay our wages; we're out here representing big business instead - that's the way the British diplomatic corps works, as if you didn't already know."

[whatproblem]

Useless f£€>ot

[Dogbarker]

If this interview was to give confidence in the  future of this British position and role it floundered miserably.

Edited October 20, 2016 by Dogbarker
Missed word changed context

[grumbleweed]

Wear crash helmets and get insured, some real pearls of wisdom there. He forgot to add "don't eat yellow snow"

[cmsally]

A lot of holiday insurance has a clause  that excludes any accidents riding a motorbike.

So he should really do his homework and be more specific on this one.

 

Where would I see a campaign organised by the British Embassy/govt for it's citizens to wear helmets. If he says they exist I would like to see examples.

[geriatrickid]

15 hours ago, Rob8891 said:

So in a nutshell, they are doing SFA for us in real terms. Yes, there may be some services online, but far too much required a busy to Bangkok. Truly pathetic.

 

How much tax revenue is generated by the UK nationals in the CM region?

Seriously, why would you expect the UK taxpayers  to support the delivery of services to residents of a foreign location?  I get it. You  believe that you are entitled to these services.  However, the reality is that the numbers of  UK nationals and their ability to pay  for these non essential services is minimal.

[geriatrickid]

41 minutes ago, grumbleweed said:

Wear crash helmets and get insured, some real pearls of wisdom there. He forgot to add "don't eat yellow snow"

 

Considering the  inanity of many comments offered by UK nationals, it is necessary to provide these kinds of statements.

[saminoz]

"+his husband"!  Wow.  I didn't realise the LBGT etc. etc. had gotten so far as to have an actual openly gay, openly gay married ambassador appointed to a post like this.

 

[Rob8891]

25 minutes ago, geriatrickid said:

 

How much tax revenue is generated by the UK nationals in the CM region?

Seriously, why would you expect the UK taxpayers  to support the delivery of services to residents of a foreign location?  I get it. You  believe that you are entitled to these services.  However, the reality is that the numbers of  UK nationals and their ability to pay  for these non essential services is minimal.

I've paid taxes my whole working life, taxes which did not only pay for the NHS, education and roads, but also consular services world-wide. Now that I'm making no call on services in the UK, there is every justification to expect the other services into which I have been paying.

[cmsally]

In the case of the retirees, most of those will have been paying into NHS for many years and now unlikely to access it when they might need it most. Perhaps the ambassador is unaware that many of these people are unable to get insurance  at all due to age limits and restrictions. 

Is it not the case that some retirees from other European countries can still get some level of healthcare here which is subsidised by their home govt? Norwegian would be one example but maybe German and Swiss also.

 

No offense to the ambassador but if this interview was meant to be an introduction to the capabilities of the UK representatives in Thailand, it failed miserably.

[jesimps]

2 hours ago, TheSiemReaper said:

Translation: "We're doing nothing for the ordinary citizens of Britain who pay our wages; we're out here representing big business instead - that's the way the British diplomatic corps works, as if you didn't already know."

As an ex member of that organisation I can verify that.

 

 

[Thailand]

In true Thai style I guess he was simply transferred to this current inactive post.

[chickenslegs]

1 hour ago, saminoz said:

"+his husband"!  Wow.  I didn't realise the LBGT etc. etc. had gotten so far as to have an actual openly gay, openly gay married ambassador appointed to a post like this.

 

 

In other news:

Queen Victoria is dead.

[hansnl]

2 hours ago, TheSiemReaper said:

Translation: "We're doing nothing for the ordinary citizens of Britain who pay our wages; we're out here representing big business instead - that's the way the British diplomatic corps works, as if you didn't already know."

I have news for you.

Embassies are there to supply services for business firstly, and maybe only.

Then after a very long time nothing, a mere afterthought as it seems, supply a kind of mailbox annex email "service" for consular thingy's.

More or less get used to the idea the politico's in nearly all countries, and their offices, are not interested in you, only in the tax you pay.

That is democracy for you.

[Jonmarleesco]

'Ambassador Davidson: We have had many meetings with the governor and with immigration. We have offered to show them how our visa application centre in Bangkok works ...' Or doesn't, it not being the most laudable example of operational efficiency. Yet HMG, in its overboard enthusiasm, decided the visa centre should also be permitted to process British (and Australian) passport applications.

 

'Ambassador Davidson: Safety for our citizens is a concern. We have campaigns to encourage our citizens to wear crash helmets, to take out insurance when renting motorcycles or cars ... ... We talk to tour operators to ensure that they are fully prepared for all eventualities as well as to have everyone insured. We have an annual safety campaign in Chiang Mai on Songkran safety as well.' But they stay well away from bungled murder enquiries.

[Jonmarleesco]

7 hours ago, geriatrickid said:

 

How much tax revenue is generated by the UK nationals in the CM region?

Seriously, why would you expect the UK taxpayers  to support the delivery of services to residents of a foreign location?  I get it. You  believe that you are entitled to these services.  However, the reality is that the numbers of  UK nationals and their ability to pay  for these non essential services is minimal.

You mean as opposed to funding foreign aid, foreign-based organisations, foreign junkets, etc? The U.K. government regularly wastes and/or mislays hundreds of millions - nay, billions - of pounds of the taxpayer's money, with no idea where it went, or why. That includes taxes paid by residents of LoS. Or are you under the naïve impression that only U.K. residents pay U.K. taxes?

 

Moreover, numerous British residents of Thailand paid into the British system for many years, for things to which they are now unable to lay claim.

 

Take your head out of the sand.

[billd766]

On 20/10/2016 at 10:42 AM, chickenslegs said:

 

In other news:

Queen Victoria is dead.

 

I hadn't realised that. I guess the internet is slow up my way.

 

 I thought that she was still alive and kicking at 197 years old.

[Rimmer]

A post has been removed, if you have different information then post it but there is no need to flame