WIREDGOV

Speech by British Ambassador to the United States, Sir Christian Turner, at the King’s Birthday Party on 30 September 2026.

Your Royal Highness; Cabinet Secretaries; Members of Congress; Friends and Allies; Redcoats and Rebels. 

First of all, can I say a big thank you to the Band of Bugles & Rifles. I’m absolutely thrilled they could be with us this evening.

In 1776, celebrations for the King’s Birthday on this side of the Atlantic were, shall we say, rather subdued. But 250 years later, what an extraordinary story we have to celebrate. 

From George III to Charles III. From adversaries to allies. From a small family disagreement over taxation to one of the most productive alliances the world has ever known.  

What a semi-quincentennial year this has been. An historic State Visit.  The largest ever British trade mission to the United States. A World Cup that settled one question beyond any doubt: no Scotland, no party.  

Earlier this month, twenty-five years after 9/11, we gathered in New York, Pennsylvania and at the Pentagon to honour those whose courage and sacrifice continue to bind our nations together.  

And just last week, the new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham had a very positive first meeting with President Trump. 

So, through all of this, I return to the words of His Majesty The King’s historic address to Congress: ours is a relationship that is “vital, enduring and consequential.”  

And as we face the future together, I have three messages I’d like to leave with you today.  

Reinvention for Shared Success 

First, what strikes me most is not simply the strength of our relationship. It is its ability to keep reinventing itself to define the decades ahead.  

Since Claire and I returned to Washington DC in February, the town of our children’s birth, we have travelled across the breadth of this amazing country, seeing the diversity, the dynamism and the drive of Americans at first hand.   

It is the same story everywhere: UK-US partnership in action. I have seen British tech start-ups in San Francisco, quantum innovators in Chicago, our law enforcement officers operating together in Tampa.    

It is a partnership which delivers concrete results: 

In just the last few months, our trade agreement has unlocked life-changing breast cancer treatments in the UK.  

Our security agencies disrupted the cyber criminals behind 120 attacks and $115 million dollars in ransom payments.  

And, the Royal Navy test launched a US torpedo from an uncrewed submersible – a major milestone for our AUKUS security partnership.   

I have also learned two important life lessons. Chris Stapleton sounds even better live. And, when white-water rafting, phones do not float in the Colorado River.  

Taking on the detractors 

Second, to be honest, I have heard voices of doubt on both sides of the Atlantic who question whether old alliances still matter. They look at a volatile world and conclude that we face a choice: between the USA and Europe, or argue that nations should turn inward. 

I draw the opposite conclusion. Because history teaches us that the answer to change is not retreat. It is renewal. 

To those who say British cities are unsafe, that we are being overrun by migrants or have abandoned freedom of speech, I say you are factually wrong. I reject the distorted narratives and forces of division that drive this.   

As we reflect on the spirit of 1776, our two countries have, of course, disagreed at times. Just take our small differences over language. I give you aluminium, football, pants.

The story of our alliance has never been the absence of disagreement. No, it has been the ability to work through disagreement and emerge stronger.  

Our task now is not to preserve this relationship in aspic. Nor rest on complacency. It is to adapt it for the decades ahead.  I am profoundly optimistic that we will.  

For anyone still in doubt, I invite you to settle it over a pint – a proper British pint – at the Embassy’s newest diplomatic asset, The Two Georges pub.    

Cards at the table 

Third, I want us to be confident about the cards Britain brings to the table. 

The United Kingdom is one of the world’s great centres of innovation, research and finance. Home to four of the world’s top ten universities, churning out talent, patents and innovation. The third-largest tech ecosystem on earth. The fastest growing economy in the G7 in the first half of 2026, revised upwards again today. 

And we are backing economic strength with hard power.  We are NATO’s third-highest defence spender in cash terms, with nearly $400 billion dollars committed over the next four years. 15% of every F35 airframe is manufactured in the UK. All built on 80 years of cutting edge intelligence cooperation, to keep us safe.  

This year, our bilateral trade hit a record $430 billion dollars, growing at 4%. We have $1.7 trillion invested in each other’s economies. The UK is a top investor in 25 of your 50 States.  

That is one of the reasons I can thank our lead sponsors tonight: BP, Barclays, HSBC, London Stock Exchange Group, and Booking Holdings. And a huge thank you to the outstanding teams here at the British Embassy for all the hard work to make this occasion happen. 

There is no doubt our greatest strength is our people. That is why it is such an honour to welcome His Royal Highness, The Duke of Edinburgh this evening. 

For 70 years, the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award has inspired young people to realise their potential. We have at least one gold award holder here tonight, Lady Turner. Today, the award is active in all 50 states, strengthening our friendship for generations to come.   

Conclusion 

So, to conclude, the question is not whether the world is changing. The question is how we shape that change for those who will inherit it.  

Yesterday, I had the privilege of joining members of the US Administration – including Secretary Burgum – at the Washington Monument to bury a time capsule, to be opened on America’s 500th birthday in 2276.   It contains artifacts and messages from British students inspired by President Washington, sharing their hopes for the future.  

And I’d like to share you one message from one of them, Maddie, aged thirteen, from Washington in Sunderland. And she wrote: 

“To bear a country’s name is not just pride, But quiet work when no one sees your hand. In every choice, let conscience be your guide, And serve with care the good of all the land.” 

Ladies and gentlemen, Your Royal Highness, Secretary Bessent, Secretary Burgum, friends, when the United Kingdom and the United States combine our talent, our ingenuity and our ambition, the future becomes brighter for all of us.  

Please join me in celebrating His Majesty The King, and to look forward with confidence to the next chapter of our extraordinary partnership.  

Thank you.