New British envoy reveals why India is named after India

NEW DELHI: Presenting his credentials to President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday, newly appointed

British high commissioner

to India

Philip Barton

said he considered himself to be a “bridge” between India and UK.


“My mother was born in Shimla and I was posted here in Delhi in the 1990s. I met my wife, Amanda, when we both lived and worked here and we named our daughter ‘India’ — not knowing I would return one day as high commissioner,” said Barton who succeeds Dominic Asquith who served here from April 2016 to January this year. The envoys of Uzbekistan and New Zealand also presented their credentials to the President on Wednesday as they took over their new assignment.


Stating that the UK-India relationship had “unparalleled breadth and depth of connection” Barton said, in his initial remarks, “there is a deep commitment across the British government, industry and civil society to grow that relationship even further: developing our trade and economic partnership, now that the UK has left the EU; tackling the global challenges of climate change and green recovery, acting together as a force for good in the world; and working closely as partners to keep our countries safe and secure.”

Barton was British high commissioner to Pakistan from 2014 to 2016, and served as private secretary to PMs John Major and Tony Blair. Before heading out to India, Barton was director general in the cabinet office working on the UK’s longer-term response to the Covid-19 crisis, according to his official bio.

The British envoy presented credentials a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to address the India Global Week, a virtual conference to bring policymakers and business together between India and the UK. Other top ministers scheduled to address the event are external affairs minister Dr S Jaishankar, commerce minister Piyush Goyal, IT & law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and skills minister Mahendra Nath Pandey.