Message from David Clay, British Consul General, December 2025
David Clay, MBE, HM Consul General to New England, was the featured speaker at this year's BABCNE 37th Christmas luncheon held on December 5. For those who could not be with us, a precis of his timely remarks is below.​
"It has been a busy year for the UK-US relationship. Coldplay came to Gitette Stadium and reminded all CEOs of the perils of a Kiss Cam. Beyonce miraculously returned unscathed from six days in Tottenham.
Rory Mcilroy went to Augusta in April and showed America how to play golf. Then just for good measure, he came back in September and did it again at the Ryder Cup. Aimee Lou Wood has shown America the power of a British smile in White Lotus.
We've also had a new US-UK trade agreement; a successful state visit to the UK and a new tech deal that covers Al, quantum and nuclear. Just this week, we've seen the US and UK reach a really significant deal on pharmaceuticals.​
Here in Boston, we've launched the UK-Massachusetts legislative caucus, deepened our research collaboration on issues like engineering biology, and seen the trade and investment relationship thrive.
And we've just celebrated the 235th anniversary of the Consulate on December 2.​
So I'm delighted to report the relationship is in great shape.
Next year, we have a lot to look forward to.
In March we have the 250th anniversary of Evacuation Day.​
My favourite statistic about this period of Boston history is that the British garrison managed to get through half a million gallons of rum during their occupation of the city. I've often thought it must be terrible to find your city occupied by thousands of inebriated invaders.​
On a completely unrelated subject, the World Cup is coming to Boston in June and July.​
It's one of those moments when I feel most thankful to be in Boston as the only people who really understand FIFA's seeding system are three professors of computational logic at MIT.​
We're also looking forward to the 250th anniversary of American independence in July.​
I've spent a lot of the last year showing up at anniversaries — Lexington — Concord — Bunker Hill— and representing the losing side. 4 July next year will be my last chance for a while to make my standard lame joke - that you probably heard Last year - about being a professional loser.​
But in all seriousness, it has been a real privilege to play a small part in the anniversaries so far. And July will be a really important moment to reflect on the history of our relationship and how a terrible conflict has transformed into the world's greatest alliance.​
As I look around this room today, it fills me with great optimism that the future of the relationship is in good hands.​
I would like to close by wishing everyone happy holidays and a very merry Christmas."
Message from David Clay, British Consul General, September 2024
It’s a pleasure to be contributing to my first BABCNE newsletter since taking over from Peter Abbott OBE as His Majesty’s Consul General for New England in mid-August. In the six weeks I have been here, I have seen what an important role BABCNE plays in bringing together the British-American business community in New England. I look forward to working closely together during the four years of my posting in Boston.
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The new Government in the UK has been clear that promoting economic growth is its top priority. This means that the work that the Consulate does to strengthen trade and investment links between the UK and New England is more important than ever. I am fortunate to have an excellent trade and investment team to lead this work, headed by Tripp Whalen, who arrived just a couple of weeks before me. But the mission to support economic growth extends to the other sections of the Consulate, from our team that deals with science and innovation to our press, politics and public affairs team.
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Since arriving in Boston, my priority has been to begin to build the relationships that I will need to deliver my objectives in this job. BABCNE President Rick McKenna kindly invited me on board his boat in week two to talk me through the role of BABCNE and give me a primer on how to do business in Boston and New England. It is the only meeting I have attended where I have seen an osprey fly past with a fish in its beak. I have had excellent conversations with several other BABCNE members during my first few weeks in the role and have no doubt that I will meet many more as I spend more time out and about in Boston and New England.
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I have really enjoyed getting to know companies and organisations working in a wide range of sectors including higher education, tech, life sciences, clean energy and insurance. In my view, there is no substitute for face to face meetings and I am keen to ensure that I hear directly from businesses on how the Consulate can support them. I was particularly pleased to visit Hartford CT to learn more about our cooperation with CT on insurtech and insurance. I was delighted to hear that the International Economic Development Council recognised the UK/Connecticut Insurtech Corridor as the best innovative economic development project in the US during its annual conference in Denver. Congratulations to Mike Hendy from the Consulate, who has been at the heart of this project for a number of years.
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One of the things that has struck me since starting this role has been the breadth of the role of the Consul General, reflecting the many strands of the UK’s relationship with New England covering education, sport, the arts and cooking to name just a few. The long history of the relationship will be a theme over the next year and a half. As a (very amateur) student of history, it’s been great to hear about Massachusetts’s plans to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the revolution in 1776 and visit some of the historical sites connected to the events that led up to the revolution. There will be a lot of opportunities to showcase the long history of the relationship, and how the hostilities of 250 years ago has transformed into one of the world’s strongest alliances.
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Outside work, it has been great to start to explore New England with my wife Sophie and three kids Ellie, Harriet and George. Our very first visit out of Boston was to the England v USA polo match in Newport RI, which was a wonderful event sponsored by BABCNE. My family and I were shown great hospitality by the whole BABCNE team and we really enjoyed the experience (especially the last minute England victory). I’m looking forward to many more BABCNE events over the next four years and getting to know you all.