Dame Judith Macgregor

Dame Judith joined the British Tourist Authority Board in December 2017. 

From September 2013 to 2017, Dame Judith was British High Commissioner to South Africa, retiring from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in March 2017 after a career of 40 years in the Diplomatic Service. 

As an Oxford University graduate, she spent a year in Romania as a British Council scholar, joining the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 1976 serving first in the former Yugoslavia, and later as First Secretary in Prague and Paris. In her early FCO years, she held various posts dealing with Poland, Western Europe, and as the Secretary of State’s speechwriter.  After serving as Ambassador to Slovakia from 2004 to 2007, she was appointed FCO Director for Migration (2007 to 2009). 

She became Ambassador to Mexico in 2009, for which she was awarded the Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George. In 2013 she became British High Commissioner to South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland. She was awarded the DCMG (Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George) for her services to diplomacy in January 2016.

Since leaving the Diplomatic Service, and in addition to her role with the BTA, Dame Judith has taken up a number of board positions, including Independent Non-Executive Director for the Mexican company Fresnillo plc, as Member of the Arts and Humanities Research Council and as Vice Chair of Southampton University. In 2020 Dame Judith was appointed Chair of the Strategic Advisory Group to the Global Challenges Research Fund. From August 2021 until November 2022, Dame Judith served as Interim Chair of the British Tourist Authority, and remains Chair of our Remuneration and People Committee.