A message from the Consul General
Dear reader,
Outside of London, the French Consulate General in Edinburgh and Glasgow is the only French diplomatic institution in the United Kingdom. Its jurisdiction is all of Scotland and the Isle of Man and like our bilateral Embassy in London, it works in the interests of our extremely close French-British relations.
Our presence here bears testament to France’s high esteem for Scotland, with which it holds extremely long-standing relations: the Auld Alliance between the two was signed in 1295. Our nations have had surprisingly close military relations: during World War II, many free French people, as well as French ships and submarines, found refuge in Scotland to continue the resistance against the Nazi occupation. French ships regularly call at Scottish ports (six times in 2010 alone), a sign of our special military relations. As was recalled at the last Anglo-French Summit on 2 November 2010, this is a very important aspect of the relationship between France and Britain.
Today, France is the third-largest importer of Scottish goods (worth £1.5 billion in 2008) and several major French companies are set up in Scotland: BNP Paribas employs about 500 people in Glasgow and Dundee – RBS has 300 in Paris – while the Michelin factory in Dundee has about 800 staff. Six hundred people are employed in Aberdeen at the headquarters of Total Exploration & Production UK. In 2009, 274,000 French people visited Scotland, while 500,000 Scots travel to France each year, where many own second homes.
French-Scottish friendship is also visible through the high-profile sporting contests, school and university exchanges, twinned cities such as Glasgow-Marseille and Edinburgh-Nice, as well as strong organisational initiatives such as the Franco-Scottish Business Club and the Franco-Scottish Society, which was founded in 1895 and is active in five Scottish cities.
The Consul General maintains relations with the Scottish authorities, business environment, intellectuals, universities and the media. He explains France’s actions and positions in Europe and internationally, e.g. this year within the framework of its G8 and G20 Presidency.
The General Consulate deals with administrative issues (e.g. transcription of civil certificates, issuance of passports or national identity cards) for French people resident in Scotland or visiting for business or pleasure. Next year, our Consulate will organise a polling station so that French people resident in Scotland can vote in the French presidential elections. The Consulate General’s work is spread via our local Honorary Consuls in Aberdeen, Dundee, the Hebrides, Shetland and the Isle of Man. We also deliver visas for the citizens
As regards the promotion of the French culture and language teaching, the Institut Français d’Ecosse in Edinburgh and the Alliance Française in Glasgow are the main institutions in Scotland. In all other fields, the Consulate General is the point of call for French action. Please do not hesitate to contact us about any initiatives you wish to undertake with France or any information you require about our country and its action.
I wish you all the best for 2011.
Regards,
