Andrew Cahn
Encyclopedia
Sir Andrew Thomas Cahn, KCMG
(born 1 April 1951).
, said: "Andrew has been a wonderful chief executive of UK Trade & Investment and a fantastic ambassador for the UK. He has been central to the Government’s efforts to make Britain an attractive place to invest and to sell Britain to the world." Since stepping down, Cahn has taken a role as Vice Chairman (Public Policy) at Nomura Group
, Chairman of Huawei
UK's advisory board and is a member of the Franchise Board of Lloyds of London.
Career summary:
FRS. He was educated at Bedales School
and then Trinity College, Cambridge
(BA 1st class Hons).
He is married to Virginia Beardshaw, Chief Executive of I Can
, the children's communications charity; they have one daughter, and two sons.
, and a governor and member of the Executive Committee of the Institute for Government and Chair of the New Opera Project. He was also a trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew where he was Chairman of their Audit Committee. He was formerly a non-executive director at Cadbury Ltd and a Governor of Bedales School
.
(KCMG) in the 2009 New Year Honours List.
In the event, UK Trade and Investment, the government department he led, spent no extra money. As was later explained, “The Foreign Office turned out not to be spending some money in another area. We were told there was an amount of money and asked if we could spend it productively.”
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(born 1 April 1951).
Career
In January 2011, Sir Andrew Cahn stepped down after five years in charge of UK Trade and Investment, the government department that promotes exports and attracts foreign direct investment. Prime Minister, David CameronDavid Cameron
David William Donald Cameron is the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. Cameron represents Witney as its Member of Parliament ....
, said: "Andrew has been a wonderful chief executive of UK Trade & Investment and a fantastic ambassador for the UK. He has been central to the Government’s efforts to make Britain an attractive place to invest and to sell Britain to the world." Since stepping down, Cahn has taken a role as Vice Chairman (Public Policy) at Nomura Group
Nomura Group
The formerly Nomura zaibatsu is a company headquartered in Chuo, Tokyo.Nomura is one of the major industrial and financial conglomerate groupings of Japan. Osaka Nomura bank was founded by Tokushichi Nomura II in 1919 after many successful business ventures; it was established on the Mitsui...
, Chairman of Huawei
Huawei
Huawei is a Chinese multinational networking and telecommunications equipment and services company headquartered in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China...
UK's advisory board and is a member of the Franchise Board of Lloyds of London.
Career summary:
- 2011 - Present Chairman Huawei UK advisory board
- 2011 - Present Vice Chairman (Public Policy), Nomura GroupNomura GroupThe formerly Nomura zaibatsu is a company headquartered in Chuo, Tokyo.Nomura is one of the major industrial and financial conglomerate groupings of Japan. Osaka Nomura bank was founded by Tokushichi Nomura II in 1919 after many successful business ventures; it was established on the Mitsui...
- 2011 - Present Franchise Board of Lloyds of London
- 2006 - 2011 Chief Executive Officer, UK Trade & InvestmentUK Trade & InvestmentUK Trade & Investment is a UK Government department working with businesses based in the United Kingdom to ensure their success in international markets, and encourage the best overseas companies to look to the UK as their global partner of choice ....
- 2000 – 2006 Director of Government and Industry Affairs, British AirwaysBritish AirwaysBritish Airways is the flag carrier airline of the United Kingdom, based in Waterside, near its main hub at London Heathrow Airport. British Airways is the largest airline in the UK based on fleet size, international flights and international destinations...
- 1997 – 2000 Chef de Cabinet (Chief of Staff) to Neil KinnockNeil KinnockNeil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock is a Welsh politician belonging to the Labour Party. He served as a Member of Parliament from 1970 until 1995 and as Labour Leader and Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition from 1983 until 1992 - his leadership of the party during nearly nine years making him...
, Vice President of the European CommissionEuropean CommissionThe European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union.... - 1995 – 1997 Deputy Head of European Secretariat, Cabinet OfficeCabinet OfficeThe Cabinet Office is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom responsible for supporting the Prime Minister and Cabinet of the United Kingdom....
- 1992 – 1995 Principal Private Secretary to the Rt. Hon. William WaldegraveWilliam Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North HillWilliam Arthur Waldegrave, Baron Waldegrave of North Hill, PC , is an English Conservative politician who served in the Cabinet from 1990 until 1997 and is a Life Member of the Tory Reform Group. He is now a life peer. Lord Waldegrave is also the Chairman of the Rhodes Trust and the Chairman of...
MP, Chancellor of the Duchy of LancasterChancellor of the Duchy of LancasterThe Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster is, in modern times, a ministerial office in the government of the United Kingdom that includes as part of its duties, the administration of the estates and rents of the Duchy of Lancaster...
and subsequently Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodMinister of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodThe Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a UK cabinet position, responsible for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food. The post was originally named President of the Board of Agriculture and was created in 1889... - 1988 – 1992 Head of Research Policy, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodThe Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and from 1919 the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries...
- 1984 – 1988 Member of the Cabinet of Lord Cockfield, Vice President of the European CommissionEuropean CommissionThe European Commission is the executive body of the European Union. The body is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union....
and Commissioner for the Single MarketSingle marketA single market is a type of trade bloc which is composed of a free trade area with common policies on product regulation, and freedom of movement of the factors of production and of enterprise and services. The goal is that the movement of capital, labour, goods, and services between the members...
. - 1982 – 1984 First Secretary, UK Representation to the European Communities
- 1979 – 1982 Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodThe Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and from 1919 the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries...
- 1978 – 1979 Private Secretary to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodThe Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and from 1919 the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries...
- 1977 – 1978 UK Representation to the European Economic Community
- 1973 – 1977 Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodMinistry of Agriculture, Fisheries and FoodThe Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food was a United Kingdom government department created by the Board of Agriculture Act 1889 and at that time called the Board of Agriculture, and then from 1903 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries, and from 1919 the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries...
Personal life/family
Cahn is the son of one of the founders of Materials Science, Robert W. CahnRobert W. Cahn
Robert Wolfgang Cahn FRS was a British metallurgist whose contributions to physical metallurgy centred on the properties of dislocations. Cahn developed a successful model for the nucleation of recrystallization, which underpinned research into industrial processes involving high-temperature...
FRS. He was educated at Bedales School
Bedales School
Bedales School is a co-educational independent school situated in Hampshire, in the south east of England. Founded in 1893 by John Haden Badley in reaction to the limitations of conventional Victorian schools, today the school is one of the most expensive in the UK, charging £9,985 per term for a...
and then Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
(BA 1st class Hons).
He is married to Virginia Beardshaw, Chief Executive of I Can
I can (charity)
I CAN is a charity in the UK that exists to support the speech, language and communication skills in children with a special focus on those who find this hard: children with speech, language and communication needs .-History:...
, the children's communications charity; they have one daughter, and two sons.
Affiliations
Cahn is a trustee of the Gatsby Charitable FoundationGatsby Charitable Foundation
The Gatsby Charitable Foundation is an endowed grant-making trust, based in London. The organisation is one of the Sainsbury Family Charitable Trusts, set up to provide funding for charitable causes. Although the organisation is permitted in its Trust Deed to make general grants within this broad...
, and a governor and member of the Executive Committee of the Institute for Government and Chair of the New Opera Project. He was also a trustee of the Royal Botanic Gardens Kew where he was Chairman of their Audit Committee. He was formerly a non-executive director at Cadbury Ltd and a Governor of Bedales School
Bedales School
Bedales School is a co-educational independent school situated in Hampshire, in the south east of England. Founded in 1893 by John Haden Badley in reaction to the limitations of conventional Victorian schools, today the school is one of the most expensive in the UK, charging £9,985 per term for a...
.
Honours
Already a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG), Cahn was appointed Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St GeorgeOrder of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(KCMG) in the 2009 New Year Honours List.
Controversy
Cahn encountered controversy in January 2011, when an internal email he had sent saying the FCO wished to find ways to spend up to its 2010/11 budget ceiling, was leaked to the Daily Mail. In the email, Cahn said: “The FCO is heading for an underspend and wants to get money out of the door.”In the event, UK Trade and Investment, the government department he led, spent no extra money. As was later explained, “The Foreign Office turned out not to be spending some money in another area. We were told there was an amount of money and asked if we could spend it productively.”