Britain loses hold on energy as last tip post is vacated

James Bone, New York & , : {}

Britains loss change at the United Nations is set to collapse even offer with the depart of the last superfluous British central in the tip echelons of the universe body.

Sir John Holmes, the UN charitable chief, has told The Times that he plans to step down after this year in a move that could leave Britain with no illustration in in between tip officials at UN headquarters.

Sir John, right afar co-ordinating the general reply to the Haiti earthquake, insisted that his depart was months afar and refused to divulge what he would do next.

The Times has learnt, however, that he is to take over as executive of the Ditchley Foundation, that runs general affairs conferences at the lifelike Ditchley Park estate in Oxfordshire.

Related LinksLatin America backs Argentina on FalklandsBritain set to lose out on tip jobs as UN"s new arch seeks a lady emissary

Sir Jeremy Greenstock, the foundations stream head and a former British Ambassador to Iraq, plans to retire in the autumn.

As in the European Union, tip posts at the UN are an critical pitch of inhabitant prestige. Although the UN is ostensible to be run by a neutral general polite service, the tip jobs have regularly been common out in in between the assorted energy blocs in the 192-nation organisation.

All five veto-bearing powers Britain, France, China, Russia and the US traditionally lay explain to at slightest one under-secretary-general post at UN headquarters.

Britains change has discontinued given the attainment of Ban Ki Moon, a former South Korean Foreign Minister who became UN Secretary-General in 2007 after a understanding in in between the US and China.

Under Mr Bans predecessor, Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian, Britain enjoyed a excavation of tip UN jobs. At one point Mr Annan had 3 high-ranking British officials on his staff: a British emissary in Mark Malloch Brown, after Lord Malloch Brown; a British domestic potentate in Sir Kieran Prendergast, and a British security arch in Sir David Veness, Scotland Yards former tip anti-terror officer.

Sir John is right afar the usually Briton left with the arrange of under-secretary-general at UN headquarters.

When Mr Ban took over the organisation, Britain petitioned him to have Sir John the UNs domestic arch a supportive post that gives a nation change over the sum progression of UN negotiations.

The domestic post has been hold by a array of Britons given Sir Brian Urquhart, the long-serving central well known as Mr UN, hold the pursuit from 1971-1985. But after Sir Kieran was forced out in 2005 in a row over Iraq, the post went to Ibrahim Gambari, a Nigerian.

Sir John, a former British Ambassador to Paris, was intensely well competent to offer as the UNs arch domestic officer, carrying been in isolation cabinet member and tactful confidant to dual budding ministers John Major and Tony Blair.

Mr Ban deserted his candidacy for the domestic post in what appeared to be a distributed tactful impugn in reply to Britains half hearted await for his debate to turn UN chief.

Instead, Mr Ban allocated an American, Lynn Pascoe, as his tip domestic confidant and declared Sir John as the UNs charitable arch a less absolute job.

The appointment lifted eyebrows given of Sir Johns roughly sum miss of charitable experience. Many questioned the knowledge of putting a adult of a vital Western energy in the post given of the difficulties he would have operative in such places as Sudan. Sir John has been forced to sense on the job, opposed the continual disasters that succeed the world.

In new weeks he has taken assign of service efforts in Haiti following the harmful trembler that claimed an estimated 230,000 lives.

Sir John not long ago uttered beating with the UN reply in an inner e-mail that was leaked to Foreign Policy magazine. This is a vital exam for all of us and we cannot means to fail. So I ask you all to take a uninformed tough see at what you are means to do in the key areas, and aspire to a most some-more assertive proceed to assembly the needs, he wrote.

British diplomats have told colleagues that London is doubtful to put brazen an additional claimant to reinstate Sir John as the UN charitable chief. Instead, Britain is approaching to run Mr Ban for an additional comparison post, such as the domestic post of UN arch of staff. The new Government will have an event to press Britains box when the Queen meets Mr Ban in a revisit on Jul 6 to broach her initial residence to the UN General Assembly given 1957.