Recently appointed British Office Taipei Representative Ruth Bradley-Jones visited the Tainan City Hall on April 25, accompanied by the Office’s Head of Political Leon Man and Director Chen Yu-wei. This is the Representative’s first official visit to Tainan since taking office this February (2025). Tainan Mayor Huang Wei-che, Director-General Su En-en of the Department of Information and International Relations, and Economic Development Bureau Deputy Director Xiao Fu-ren welcomed the visitors. Both parties had in-depth exchanges on cultural and economic issues.
After congratulating Bradley-Jones on her new position, Mayor Huang remarked that Tainan is a historical capital with widely recognized delicacies and prosperous new technology industries. Agriculture, auto parts, and high-tech are some of the thriving industries in the city. He noted that, like Tainan, the United Kingdom is home to many historical cities and is famous for its whiskey. Mayor Huang suggested that Tainan and the UK explore opportunities for exchange in culture, education, and various industries. He also pointed out that the UK is a popular destination for students from Tainan pursuing overseas studies, and looks forward to future collaborations with Representative Bradley-Jones and the British Office Taipei.
Ms. Bradley-Jones shared that when she came to Taiwan with her family two years ago, she was deeply impressed by Tainan’s food and weather. She explained that she plans to travel around Taiwan to learn more about the unique characteristics of each city and looks forward to partnering with Tainan to expand the interactions between the UK and Taiwan. In addition to building on the existing collaborations in the areas of economy, trade, and green energy, Bradley-Jones highlighted that the UK has one of the highest numbers of startups in the world. She believes this presents endless opportunities for innovative collaborations between the two parties.
Ruth Bradley-Jones is an experienced diplomat with a career that spans over 20 years. Previous postings include Myanmar, Ethiopia, Djibouti, and as the UK representative to the EU. During this Tainan visit, the British Office delegation not only met with Mayor Huang Wei-che but also visited the Tainan Fire Bureau to learn about the city’s disaster response, relief, and rescue operations.