John Dauth

John Dauth AO, LVO
Born	John Cecil Dauth 9 April 1947 Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Alma mater	The University of Sydney
Occupation	Public servant and diplomat
Partner(s)	Richard Glynn

John Cecil Dauth, AO, LVO (born 9 April 1947) is an Australian public servant and diplomat. He was the Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 2008 to 2013. He was also the first openly gay Australian High Commissioner.

Biography

Dauth was born in Brisbane, Queensland.^[1] Graduating from the University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Arts degree, he joined the Australian Public Service in the Department of External Affairs in 1969,^[2] and was seconded to Buckingham Palace between 1977 and 1980, serving in the Press Office of the Royal Household as Assistant Press Secretary to Queen Elizabeth II and Press Secretary to the Prince of Wales.^[3]

Dauth has served in a number of positions overseas including: Nigeria (Second Secretary, 1970–1972); Tutor in Residence at Burgmann College, Australian National University (1974–1975); Iran (Chargé d'affaires, 1983–1985); and New Caledonia (Consul-General, 1986–1987). He previously served as High Commissioner to New Zealand (2006–2008).^[4] Prior to this he was Permanent Representative to the United Nations (2001–2006) and High Commissioner to Malaysia (1993–1996).^[3] He was the Consul-General in New Caledonia from 1986-1987 before being declared persona non grata by the French government after Paris complained that he was too close to the Kanak pro-independence movement.^[3] In 2008, the then Prime Minister of Australia, Kevin Rudd, appointed Dauth as Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, succeeding Richard Alston.^[3][5] Mike Rann succeeded Dauth on 1 February 2013.^[6]

Personal

Dauth is gay and is in a same-sex relationship with his partner, Richard Glynn, a subsea engineering consultant.^[7]

Honours

• 1980: Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order (LVO), for service as Australian Press Secretary to the Queen during the 1980 Royal Visit to Australia.^[8]
• 2011: Officer of the Order of Australia (AO), for distinguished service to international relations through the advancement of Australia's diplomatic, trade and cultural relationships, particularly with the United Kingdom and New Zealand, and through contributions to the United Nations.^[9]

References

1. Who's Who in Australia 2013, Crown Content, 2012.
2. Flitton, Daniel (16 January 2010). "Bureaucratic heavyweights from Class of '69". The Age. Fairfax Media. p. 3. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015.
3. "Career envoy John Dauth wins plum London post". The Australian. 7 August 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
4. "Dauth takes key Australian role in NZ". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 20 January 2006. Archived from the original on 28 October 2016.
5. Smith, Stephen (6 August 2008). "Diplomatic Appointment - High Commissioner to United Kingdom". Australian Government. Archived from the original on 20 August 2008.
6. "Rann confirmed as UK high commissioner". ABC News. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 23 August 2012.
7. Ozturk, Serkan (27 November 2012). "Retiring high commissioner tells Australia to get with the times". Gay News Network. Australia. Retrieved 11 October 2013.
8. "DAUTH, John Cecil: The Royal Victorian Order - Lieutenant". It's an Honour. Commonwealth of Australia. 12 August 1980. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
9. "DAUTH, John Cecil:Officer of the Order of Australia". It's an Honour. Commonwealth of Australia. 26 January 2011. Retrieved 27 January 2011.