Visit to the United Kingdom and Singapore

2 February 2004

The Governor-General His Excellency Major General Michael Jeffery will visit London and Singapore in March during his first overseas visit since taking office in August 2003.

The Governor-General will call on Her Majesty The Queen and meet groups relevant to Australian interests, business leaders and young Australians studying in the UK.

The Governor-General will also lay a wreath at the new Australian War Memorial in London.

The visit to Singapore will be the Governor-General’s first official visit to Australia’s immediate region.

Singapore is Australia’s largest trade and investment partner in South East Asia and our seventh largest trading partner overall. It accounts for more than $2 billion of Australia’s service exports – just under half of all service exports to the ASEAN economies. The UK ranks fourth among Australia’s trading partners in trade and services, and is the second largest investor in Australia.

The Governor-General will underscore his recent comments about Australia’s being a “Nation of Excellence – the Global Example” and emphasise Australia’s ability to deliver first-class products and services to a global market.

The Governor-General and Mrs Jeffery will leave Australia for London on Sunday, February 29, then travel to Singapore, arriving on March 7, and expect to return to Australia on Wednesday March 10.