Team Blitz India
LONDON: The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has appointed the first visually impaired British Ambassador, the most senior position within a British Embassy overseas.
Victoria Harrison, born in Dumfries, will become His Majesty’s Ambassador to Slovenia from August, charged with leading the UK government’s work to promote UK interests in the country, the FCDO shared in a statement.
She also becomes the first ambassador to serve in the position with a guide dog. She will be accompanied by two-year-old labrador-golden retriever cross Otto, matched to her by British charity Guide Dogs.
Joining the UK Diplomatic Service in 1997, Victoria was the first person with a declared disability to be recruited by the Foreign Office following the introduction of the Disability Discrimination Act putting into law equality for those with disabilities.
Her career has included postings to Helsinki and Sarajevo, as well as working on the Ukraine response and Afghanistan on her path to become Ambassador.
Today, approximately 15 per cent of UK-based Foreign Office staff have a declared disability, which includes 10 per cent of those serving in senior positions, the statement added.
