ALUMNI STORIES
From working at 10 Downing Street and advising UK Prime Ministers on multi-billion-pound business and investment opportunities , to becoming the senior UK official at the British Embassy in Dubai , Oliver Christian has risen through the ranks of Government and politics since graduating from Keele with a degree in International Relations & Philosophy .
10 | FOREVER Keele
ALUMNI STORIES
From Downing Street to Dubai
Meeting David Beckham in Doha
From working at 10 Downing Street and advising UK Prime Ministers on multi-billion-pound business and investment opportunities , to becoming the senior UK official at the British Embassy in Dubai , Oliver Christian has risen through the ranks of Government and politics since graduating from Keele with a degree in International Relations & Philosophy .
Oliver , who graduated from the University in 2008 , has 15 years ’ experience in Government , having worked in trade , investment , business , regulation and security , across several Departments , and represented the UK in its diplomatic missions overseas .
He is currently serving as His Majesty ’ s Trade Commissioner for the Middle East and Pakistan , and His Majesty ’ s Consul General to Dubai and the Northern Emirates . In his role as HM Trade Commissioner , Oliver leads the Government ’ s trade and investment effort across ten markets including the Gulf Cooperation Council ( GCC ), Jordan , Lebanon , Iran , Iraq and Pakistan . As HM Consul General , Oliver co-ordinates the Government effort overseas to promote UK trade , investment , and prosperity , and leads the British Embassy in Dubai , promoting and developing bilateral cooperation through economic , commercial , political and consular interests .
Oliver , who was appointed to the post in September 2023 , said : “ My current job is two-fold – the first part is to lead the UK Government ’ s Department for Business and Trade in the region , to deliver economic growth at home and abroad . The second part is leading the British Embassy in Dubai and the Government ’ s work promoting UK economic , commercial , political and consular interests as a senior leader in the Foreign , Commonwealth and Development Office .
“ I ’ ve been in the post for just over a year now and it has been a fantastic experience . It does involve long days , but I tend to throw myself into my roles and I have a fantastic team working with me . A lot of the work I do is focused on growing the UK economy , so that ’ s meeting with governments , businesses and investors and promoting the UK . The priority for the Secretary of State for Business and Trade is to secure an ambitious Free Trade Agreement ( FTA ) between the UK and the Gulf Cooperation Council ( GCC ), which would provide substantial economic opportunities for both sides .