Air Commodore Nigel James Phillips, (born 10 May 1963) is a British diplomat, former

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

officer and former

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubou ...

and Commissioner of the

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song_type = , song = , image_map = South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in United Kingdom.svg , map_caption = Location of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands in the southern Atlantic Oc ...

. He has served as

Governor of Saint Helena The Governor of Saint Helena is the representative of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarch in the United Kingdom's British overseas territory, overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Governor is ap ...

since 13 August 2022.

Career

Phillips joined the

in 1984 and went on to serve in various appointments, rising to the rank of Air Commodore. From 1993 to 1997, he attended Durham University, graduating as a

Master of Business Administration A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accou ...

and in 2001 he gained a Masters in Defence Studies, Military, political and international issues from King's College London, where he was awarded a Cormorant Fellowship. He went on to join the

Defence Communication Services Agency The Defence Communication Services Agency (DCSA) was an agency of the United Kingdom Ministry of Defence responsible for the procurement and delivery of Communications and Information Services (CIS) to the defence community and related public and ...

as a Senior Staff Officer. Then in 2003 he was assigned to the

British Embassy in Stockholm The Embassy of the United Kingdom in Stockholm is the chief diplomatic mission of the United Kingdom in Sweden. The Embassy also represents the British Overseas Territories in Sweden. It is located on Skarpögatan in the Diplomatstaden neighbou ...

as the

Defence Attaché Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense indus ...

. In 2007 Phillips left Stockholm to become the Deputy Commandant and Garrison Commander at the

Defence College of Communications and Information Systems The Defence School of Communications and Information Systems (DSCIS) is a Defence Training Establishment of the British Ministry of Defence. It was formed on 1 April 2004 and comprises a headquarters and The Royal Signals School at Blandford Cam ...

. Two years later, in 2009, Phillips was assigned to the British Embassy in Warsaw, again as the

. Also in 2009, he was given the Master of Signals Award by the Royal Signals Institute. Phillips undertook Russian language training at the

Defence Academy A military academy or service academy is an educational institution which prepares candidates for service in the officer corps. It normally provides education in a military environment, the exact definition depending on the country concerned. ...

in 2012 and in 2014 he was appointed Head of Russian Strategic Studies and Wider Europe Policy at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in state ...

. He was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

in the

2013 Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

and in 2016 Phillips became the Deputy Military Representative to

Her Majesty's Permanent Representative to the European Union The Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the European Union was the United Kingdom's foremost diplomatic representative to the European Union, and head of the United Kingdom Representation to the European Union (UKREP), while t ...

Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...

, under the Ministry of Defence. In June 2017 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office announced that Phillips had been appointed the new

Governor of the Falkland Islands The governor of the Falkland Islands is the representative of the British Crown in the Falkland Islands, acting "in His Majesty's name and on His Majesty's behalf" as the islands' ''de facto'' head of state in the absence of the British monarch ...

and Commissioner for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, succeeding Colin Roberts on 12 September 2017. In April 2022 the

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' ministries of foreign affairs, it was created on 2 September 2020 through the merger of the Foreig ...

announced his appointment as

Governor of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha The Governor of Saint Helena is the representative of the British monarch in the United Kingdom's overseas territory of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha. The Governor is appointed by the monarch on the official advice of His Maje ...

Honours

Order of the British Empire (Military) Ribbon

Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon

Ribbon - Royal Air Force Long Service and Good Conduct Medal

References

1963 births Living people Alumni of Durham University Alumni of King's College London Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Commissioners for South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Governors of the Falkland Islands Royal Air Force officers Royal Air Force air commodores Governors of Saint Helena British colonial governors and administrators in Africa {{RAF-bio-stub