Jane Miller (diplomat)

Her Excellency Jane Miller OBE
High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Guyana
Incumbent
Assumed office 20 July 2021[1]
Monarchs	Elizabeth II Charles III
Prime Minister	Boris Johnson Liz Truss Rishi Sunak
Preceded by	Greg Quinn
Personal details
Born	1965 or 1966 (age 58–59)[2]
Nationality	British
Spouse	Rob Miller[3]
Children	1[3]

Jane Caroline Miller OBE[4] is a British diplomat who is currently the High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Guyana. She is the first female to be appointed to the post.[1][5] She also serves as Ambassador of the United Kingdom to CARICOM[6] and non-resident Ambassador to the Republic of Suriname.[3]

Early career

Miller started her career as a dietitian before joining Voluntary Services Overseas and then the Overseas Development Administration. She then worked for the World Bank before joining the Department for International Development in 2005, where she operated in Africa, in particular Tanzania.[7]

Miller received the Order of the British Empire in the 2015 New Year Honours for services to Development in Africa, particularly towards ending Female Genital Mutilation.[2][4]

High Commissioner

Miller was appointed as High Commissioner of the United Kingdom to Guyana and Non-Resident Ambassador to the Republic of Suriname on 11 June 2021, succeeding Greg Quinn.[3] She was accredited on 20 July 2021.[1]

On 18 October 2022, Miller announced visa-free access for Guyanese passport holders to enter the United Kingdom from 9 November.[8]

Miller was directly criticised by the Guyanese opposition parties A Partnership for National Unity and Alliance for Change in November 2022 for her claims that the current voter list (as used in the 2020 Guyanese general election) is acceptable for use with existing safeguarding mechanisms.[9][10] Leader of the opposition Aubrey Norton claimed that she made "ill-informed comments" and that "the present voters list is bloated",[10] before stating that Miller "must not be allowed to go against the wishes of the Guyanese people".[11]

Personal life

Miller is married to Dr. Rob Miller. They have one daughter.[3] Miller's eldest daughter, Zoe, died in 2012[2] at the age of 13 in a railway accident on the West Coast Mainline near Berkhamsted.[12][13] Their other daughter is named Sam.[2]

References

1. "First female British High Commissioner accredited". Newsroom- Guyana. 20 July 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
2. Choules, Becca (31 July 2015). "Jane's mission to stamp out female genital mutilation". Hemel Today. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
3. "Change of British High Commissioner to Guyana 2021" (Press release). London, United Kingdom: Government of the United Kingdom. 11 June 2021. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
4. "2015 New Years Honours" (PDF) (Press release). London, United Kingdom: Government of the United Kingdom. 30 December 2014. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
5. "First Female British High Commissioner to Guyana pays Courtesy Call on Speaker of the National Assembly of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana" (Press release). Georgetown, Guyana: Parliament of the Co-Operative Republic of Guyana. 22 July 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
6. "SG Accredits new UK Ambassador to CARICOM" (Press release). Georgetown, Guyana: CARICOM Today. 3 September 2021. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
7. "Jane Miller OBE". www.gov.uk. UK Government. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
8. "Guyanese can now travel to UK without a visa". Department of Public Information. Government of Guyana. 19 October 2022. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
9. Chabrol, Denis (12 November 2022). "Existing voters list can be used with safeguards- UK High Commissioner". Demerara Waves News. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
10. "Opposition rejects UK High Commissioner going against Guyanese wishes for clean voter list". Village Voice News. 16 November 2022. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
11. Chabrol, Denis (15 November 2022). "Opposition Leader criticises British High Commissioner because he disagrees with her position on voters list". Retrieved 31 December 2022.
12. "Zoe Miller train fall death an accident, inquest rules". BBC News. BBC. 11 September 2012. Retrieved 31 December 2022.
13. Lewis, Jamie (25 April 2012). "Zoe Miller: Death of Barefoot Girl on Rail Tracks Still Unexplained". IBTimes.co.uk. International Business Times. Retrieved 31 December 2022.