Britain’s foreign policy faces a number of significant changes that will have an impact on the ambitions and abilities of its ‘Global Britain’ vision. From the sweeping geopolitical developments that have led to a rivalry between world powers, to the merger of the Department for International Development and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. These changes present both opportunities and challenges for the future of UK foreign and development policy.

The International Rescue Committee and the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), a renowned defence and security think tank, have joined forces to publish this new essay collection. We provide tangible propositions for how the UK can be a progressive force for good on the international stage.

The collection explores ways in which the UK can tackle global challenges and deliver on its ‘Global Britain’ ambition across a range of areas including climate, global health, foreign policy, science and technology. Each essay offers a tangible way forward, to ensure the UK’s foreign policy can deliver for people in the country and across the globe.

The essays include:

  • Rt Hon David Miliband, IRC President and CEO, highlighting the key challenges facing the UK and what the future priorities should be.
  • Baroness Sugg CBE, former FCDO Minister, outlining how the UK could launch its first Feminist Foreign Policy, detailing how a feminist approach to diplomatic and development strategy and partnerships would improve UK impact on the global stage, and support ambitions to ‘build back better’.
  • Fatou Jeng, Founder of Clean Earth Gambia and UNFCCC youth representative, discussing how the UK can put justice at the heart of its action on climate change.
  • Lord Peter Ricketts, former National Security Advisor, providing a strategic analysis of UK engagement in conflict prevention and the use of diplomacy.
  • Sir Mark Lowcock, Under-Secretary General UN OCHA, advancing detailed proposals to reform humanitarian finance, including pre-positioning anticipatory finance.
  • Sir Jeremy Farrar and Alice Jamieson, from Wellcome Trust, setting out priorities for UK health security, detailing current inter-governmental proposals to strengthen global pandemic preparedness and response.
  • Ravi Gurumurthy and Kathy Peach, from Nesta, exploring ways in which the UK can use its science and technology prowess to advance global innovation for all.

Available documents & links