New UK ambassador to Belgium in August 2014

Alison Rose will succeed Jonathan Brenton, who will be transferring to another diplomatic service appointment, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office has announced. Ms Rose will take up her appointment during August 2014. An EU specialist, she has worked for the FCO in Paris, London and Brussels, and for the Cabinet Office during the UK’s 2005 EU Presidency. She is currently working on heritage policy. In previous posts she has dealt with employment, industrial, equality and devolution issues. “I am delighted to be returning to Belgium as Her Majesty’s Ambassador,” she said. “I look forward to working with Belgium as a fellow member of the EU and NATO and an important trading partner. It will be a particular honour to serve during the Centenary commemorations of the First World War”. British Ambassadors rotate posts on average every three to four years. Jonathan Brenton has been Ambassador to Belgium since 2010, and in 2014 he will have been Ambassador here for four years. He will therefore be transferring to another diplomatic service appointment.