In the map room with Theresa May
The outlines of Britain’s post-Brexit place in the world begin to emerge
IF EVER you find yourself at a dinner party with British establishment types, ask them about the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). Jokes about gin-swilling, oikophobe globetrotters in linen suits will spill forth. The more chauvinistic may tut about that diplomat’s disease: “going native”, or sympathising more with foreigners than with folk back home. To sound clever, someone will decree that every prime minister since Thatcher has been his or her “own foreign secretary” (as if Churchill and Eden were remembered today for their education policies) and that the FCO these days is just a venue for formalities.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “In the map room with Theresa May”
From the July 23rd 2016 edition
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