David Frost Keynote Speaker
- Led Brexit Negotiations as Cabinet Minister and Chief Negotiator with the EU (2019-21)
- Former roles include special adviser to Boris Johnson in the Foreign Office, the British Ambassador in Denmark, Head of Policy Planning in the Foreign Office
- CEO of the Scotch Whisky Association, one of the UK’s biggest trade associations
David Frost's Biography
David Frost, the Rt Hon Lord Frost of Allenton CMG, was Chief Negotiator and Europe adviser to Prime Minister Boris Johnson (2019-21) and then Cabinet Minister responsible for EU relations (2021). He is an engaging speaker on British and European politics, economics and foreign policy, and speaks to his experiences of working inside and outside Government and as the key British player in Brexit talks.
He led the negotiations which broke the political deadlock over Brexit, finally took the UK out of the EU, and put in place the world’s broadest free trade agreement. He began the work of post-Brexit reform and of dealing with the problems of the Northern Ireland Protocol, but left the Government over policy differences in December 2021.
David Frost is one of those rare individuals in the UK system who has been all three of Minister, special adviser, and professional diplomat and civil servant. He was Boris Johnson’s political adviser on foreign policy in the Foreign Office and before that was British Ambassador in Denmark, Europe Director and head of Policy Planning in the Foreign Office, and Britain’s chief trade negotiator and member of the EU’s Trade Policy Committee.
He also has trade experience outside Government as CEO of one of the UK’s biggest trade associations, the Scotch Whisky Association (2013-16), and in that capacity was closely involved in the politics around the 2014 Scotland independence referendum.
He speaks to varying degrees French, German, Greek, Danish, and Russian and has smatterings of other European languages.
David Frost's Speaking Topics
Britain and Europe
How we got here and what the future holds.
Britain in the World
What are the big trends for the world? What is the way forward for Britain’s future foreign policy, alliances, and relationships?
Britain’s Economic Future
What will the world economy look like? How can Britain position itself best? What economic changes must the country make? What happens after covid?
How Government Works
What are the realities of how governments work? How do decisions get taken? Why is government different to working in the private sector? What sort of reform is needed to make government work better?
How to negotiate
How do you get results in negotiations? Why are international negotiations different? How does a country best achieve its objectives?