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About the Civil Service
Sir Peter Ricketts, Permanent Under Secretary, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
My role
I'm the Permanent Under Secretary of the FCO and also Head of the Diplomatic Service, leading 16,000 staff in the UK and at 240 Embassies and other Posts around the world. I'm keen that the Diplomatic Service should work very closely with the Home Civil Service, since there's no real distinction any more between foreign and domestic affairs. So I play a full part in the corporate work led by Gus O'Donnell, including membership of the Permanent Secretaries' Management Group.
My background
My previous job, until 2006, was the UK Permanent Representative to NATO in Brussels. Before that, I've spent my whole career in the FCO, including postings to Singapore, Brussels, Paris and Washington. I've also spent spells on secondments to HM Treasury and the Cabinet Office.
Career highlight
Every job I've had has been rewarding. One of the more memorable moments was a meeting with the then Foreign and Defence Secretaries, interrupted by the first pictures of 9/11, and starting to deal with the aftermath.
Looking forward
I'm working with David Miliband, our Ministers and the FCO Board to get the FCO to focus more sharply on a few big priorities where we can make a real difference for Britain in the world. We need to show that we can shift resources to our highest priorities, and then deliver them. Quite a challenge.