Alan Stanley Collins

Sir Alan Stanley Collins, KCVO, CMG (; born 1 April 1948), is a retired British diplomat and former Consul General in New York City (2007–11), High Commissioner to Singapore (2003–07) and Ambassador to the Philippines (1998–2002).

Collins joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in 1981 as a Desk Office after working in the Ministry of Defence for around 11 years. He had served in a number of diplomatic positions in Ethiopia and the Philippines before he became Head of Aviation and Maritime Department in 1993. From 1995 to 1998, he was Director-General of the British Trade and Cultural Office in Taipei (predecessor of the British Office Taipei). Between 2002 and 2003, he was seconded to Royal Dutch Shell as vice-president for International Relations.

Collins took a keen interest in the welfare of children when he was Ambassador to the Philippines. As High Commissioner to Singapore, he took part in arranging Queen Elizabeth II's third state visit to that country in 2006, for which he was made a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. In Singapore, he also served in the delegation that won the 2012 Olympics for London. In 2011, he was further associated with the preparation of the Olympic Games when he was appointed managing director of Olympic Legacy under the UK Trade & Investment.

After retiring from the diplomatic service in 2011, Collins has held a number of directorships, including those of Prudential Assurance Singapore, ICICI Bank UK and JP Morgan American Investment Trust, etc. He has been a Trustee of Battersea Dogs & Cats Home since 2021.

Biography

Early years Collins was born in London, the United Kingdom, on 1 April 1948. He is the son of Stanley Arthur Collins and Rose Elizabeth Gimble. He was educated at Strand Grammar School before entering the London School of Economics, where he studied international relations and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in economics. In 1970, he joined the Ministry of Defence (MoD), serving in junior positions including those related to personnel, resource management, defence policy and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. Between 1973 and 1975, he was Private Secretary to the Vice Chief of the Air Staff. His first position was a Desk Officer for the Nordic countries in the Western European Department. Since Taiwan and the United Kingdom did not have formal diplomatic relations, the Office functioned as a de facto embassy to represent British interests in Taiwan. Collins proactively fostered economic and cultural ties between the two countries. In recognition of his diplomatic work in Taiwan, he was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George in the 1998 New Year Honours list.

In 2002, Collins was seconded to Royal Dutch Shell as vice-president for International Relations, responsible for the company's global relationships with governments. Upon returning to the FCO in 2003, he was appointed High Commissioner to Singapore, where he took part in arranging Queen Elizabeth II's third state visit to Singapore in 2006.

In September 2006, it was announced that Collins would take up the dual position of Consul General in New York and Director-General of Trade and Investment in the United States.

In New York, Collins continued to be associated with the preparatory work of the 2012 Olympic Games. In 2011, he was appointed the Senior Responsible Officer of the London Olympics 2012 Co-ordination Unit to oversee the FCO's contribution to the Games. He was also managing director of Olympic Legacy under the UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) to take in charge of the strategic direction of London 2012 work in the FCO and the UKTI. Collins joined Battersea Dogs & Cats Home as a Trustee in March 2021. He sits on the Board of Trustees, the Global Programmes Committee, the Governance and Nominations Committee and chairs the Global Programmes Advancement Board.

Personal life Collins was married to Ann Dorothy Roberts in 1971.

Honours Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (New Year Honours List 1998 ) Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (13 March 2006 ) Freeman of the City of London

Footnotes