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2008 has been and gone in the European Capital of Culture, but what has it left beyond the public events of last year? Recently I met with with Ambassador for Latvia Richard Moon, British Consul General for North Rhine-Westphalia Dr Peter Tibber and Michael Roberts - the British Ambassador in Slovakia. During their visit to Liverpool as part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Leadership Week they had been talking to local politicians and viewing the beneficiaries of EU Funds from the regeneration of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the waterfront, to a community-based arts and education centre to the North of the city centre.

They were impressed with the results achieved by the funding boost to the city stating how "much it has changed Liverpool and how buoyant it looks, and how successful the city of culture year was in generating excitement and activity and regenerating areas and creating a momentum which is still going on." Admitting that there were "various misconceptions about this place" at one time, the panel commented on how they are "impressed" with the regeneration and how good Liverpool looks.

I was told that in "the other end of Europe, people talk about Liverpool, they talk about the achievements," and that their visit here today allowed them to talk to businesses about how they could export to the rest of Europe and how schools can develop links abroad. Liverpool now has a "huge opportunity to do this now, because you [Liverpool] are so well known."

During '08 most of the funding in Liverpool came from Europe and the city used it “very cleverly” by matching the funding with money from the private sector and the UK public sector. It has shown that Europe “does things that are very real and very tangible.” Also, with the current economic crisis at the moment Europe has stepped in with £5 Billion rescue package particularly for the energy sector where they have seen that “Liverpool has a lot to offer.”

On Thursday 4th June, we will be able to have an impact on the decisions in Europe with the election of the members of the European Parliament. It may be seen that Europe may not have an affect on us, but you need to “look at the opportunities for jobs, for business, for helping our environment.” As with UK elections the Ambassadors recommend to get in touch with local MEP candidates and talk to them. Find out what they stand for and then you can “influence them, use their connections and give them ideas.” For young people it gives a very good opportunity to be able to change the planet, but if you walk away from it you will not change anything.

Those interested in working for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) should see it as an opportunity to make the rest of the world work for Britain. British ideas through this service are “enormously successful” across Europe and we are “appreciated for our practicality, efficiency and fairness.” It is an overseas arm of the UK Government and is a fully integrated part of the British Civil Service. There are placement opportunities for interested parties to work in the Foreign office or embassies overseas for a short period of time. Details of these programmes can be found on the FCO website at www.fco.gov.uk. The FCO “needs different sorts of people. Above all, it needs people interested in making a difference, in changing the world in which they live and people who are willing and able to, for at least part of the time, live overseas. Sometimes in places that are quite uncomfortable and quite dangerous, but places that are important to the UK.” The sort of people that they need “can be people who have been at University or people who haven’t, they can be people who speak foreign languages or people that don’t. They can be people who think great ideas, people who are great at getting things done, people who have all sorts of different experiences and come from all sorts of different backgrounds.”

Anybody who thinks they might be interested should have a look at the website; look at the placements and “then to have a go.” The FCO is “beyond no one and is great fun.”
 

Paul Gardner