You couldn’t hope to speak to someone more qualified to discuss current international affairs than Lord David Hannay. His career as a diplomat was spent in the highest profile roles dealing with the European Union and United Nations. Hannay was in the negotiating team for Britain’s accession to the EU in the 1970’s. During the first referendum in 1975, he was working in the European Commission for Sir Christopher Soames, one of the UK’s first two Commissioners. After that he served as British Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the EU during the Single Market negotiations. He finished his full time career at the FCO as Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN at the time of the Gulf War and the wars of the Yugoslav succession.

All this gives him a wide historical context for the diplomatic crises of today. What’s more, Hannay has been a highly active crossbench peer since 2001. He’s served in multiple committees on European and international affairs.

I met Hannay on 24 February, just after he had just given a powerful speech in an emergency Lords’ debate on Ukraine. Indeed, as we walked through the Palace, Hannay spoke to multiple peers to congratulate them on their input in the debate or discuss it and to explain why the CoCom international system on strategic exports could be more effective even than Swift. He is clearly a peer of exceptional insight and …