Downer ‘disappointed’ in Payne for leaving UK post vacant during Queen’s Platinum Jubilee

London:Australia’s former foreign minister Alexander Downer has criticised the decision by Foreign Minister Marise Payne to let the UK High Commissioner’s posting fall vacant during the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

George Brandis,who is the current High Commissioner to the UK,finishes his four-year posting on April 30 and will fly home to Australia on Saturday.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne.Steven Siewert

Whoever the Labor or Liberal party picks to replace Brandis would be unlikely to arrive in the UK to take up the position until mid-June at the earliest.

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations,marking her 70 years on the throne,will take place across the country on the four-day bank holiday weekend from June 2 to 5.

The UK has been granted an extra public holiday for the event and details of how many public appearances the Queen,who has been in poor health recently,will make are still being kept secret.

Former High Commissioner to the UK and Australia’s longest-serving foreign minister Alexander Downer said Australia should have extended Brandis’ term until his replacement could be appointed by whichever party wins the federal election on May 21.

Former Foreign Minister and Australian High Commissioner to the UK Alexander Downer with the Queen and the late Duke of Edinburgh at Windsor Castle in 2015.

Former Foreign Minister and Australian High Commissioner to the UK Alexander Downer with the Queen and the late Duke of Edinburgh at Windsor Castle in 2015.Getty

“I think it’s a pity,” Downer toldThe Sydney Morning HeraldandThe Age.

“I’m surprised and disappointed that Australia won’t have a High Commissioner in London during the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee celebrations.

“The British will notice Australia’s absence because people like Foreign Secretary Liz Truss,[Prime Minister] Boris[Johnson] himself and Defence Minister Ben Wallace - these people have been really invested in the relationship with Australia and Australia can’t even be bothered to extend their High Commissioner for two months for the Jubilee.

“It’s not the end of the world,but it’s very disappointing,” he said.

Until a new High Commissioner arrives,Australia will have a senior DFAT official serving as chargé d’affaires,according to a spokesperson for Payne.

Tory MP and co-chair of the Australian Parliamentary Friendship Group Andrew Rosindell said it was “a slap in the face”.

“Our country needs an active High Commissioner here as we approach the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee,surely the High Commissioner should have been invited to stay until the summer?”

Former Australian diplomat and chair of the Menzies Australia Institute in London,Elizabeth Ames.

Former Australian diplomat and chair of the Menzies Australia Institute in London,Elizabeth Ames.Supplied

“As chairman of the group that works round the clock for better relations with Australia,this is a bit of a slap in the face for us to lose our High Commissioner at this critical time,” he said.

Elizabeth Ames,a former diplomat for Australia who has been posted in Rome and now chairs the Menzies Australia Institute in London,said it was an unforced error that left Australia short-changed.

“Depriving Australia’s post in the UK of its top diplomat at a crucial time for the British should alarm Australians,” Ames said.

“While modern technology can go a long way,successful diplomacy relies on individual relationships.

“Extending George Brandis’ term for a few more months until a new high commissioner is appointed after the election would have been a smart use of his networks and the failure to do so is an unforced error and a huge loss to Australia’s diplomatic influence,” she said.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne has been under pressure during the election for failing to visit the Solomon Islands on the eve the government’s decision to ink a security deal with China.

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Latika Bourke is a journalist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age,based in London.

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