Stuart Laing (diplomat)
Stuart Laing (born 22 July 1948)[1] was a British diplomat, and is now Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
He graduated from Corpus Christi College, Cambridge in 1970 having studied Classics.[2] He entered the diplomatic service in 1970.
During his service in the Diplomatic Service, Laing held the following offices:[1]
- Deputy Ambassador to the Czech Republic—1989-1992
- Deputy Ambassador to Saudi Arabia—1992-1995
- High Commissioner to Brunei—1998-2002
- Ambassador to Oman—2002-2005
- Ambassador to Kuwait—2005-2008
He was appointed Master of his old college Corpus Christi on the 1 October 2008 succeeding Oliver Rackham.[3]
Laing is married to Sibella (daughter of Sir Maurice Henry Dorman, herself a graduate in History of Newnham College, Cambridge) and has a son and two daughters.[4]
Laing found himself under a shroud of controversy in late February 2011 when accompanying a trade delegation to the Middle East, led by the British Prime Minister David Cameron, that contained several delegates from UK defence companies including BAE Systems and Thales Group.[5] Laing attended in his official capacity as Deputy Vice Chancellor of Cambridge University along with the heads of other British universities such as Imperial College London and University College London.[6] Objections were raised that, as such weapons and devices of public order control had recently been used by the governments of Egypt and Libya, it was irresponsible for the University to be involved in such a trip.[7]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/press-release/2005/05/fco_npr_290405_changhcommkuwait
- ↑ http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/news/press/dpp/2008060506
- ↑ http://www.cambridgenetwork.co.uk/news/article/default.aspx?objid=47830
- ↑ http://www.corpus.cam.ac.uk/oldmembers/news.php?newid=144
- ↑ http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2011/feb/21/cameron-cairo-visit-defence-trade
- ↑ http://www.politicshome.com/uk/article/22823/full_list_of_business_contractors_on_pms_tour_of_middle_east.html
- ↑ http://www.tcs.cam.ac.uk/download/TCS_Volume12_Lent_Issue6.pdf
| Academic offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Oliver Rackham |
Master of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge 2008-present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |