Stephen Christopher Brady
AO, CVO
Australian Ambassador to France
In office
28 September 2014 – 16 October 2017
Preceded byRic Wells
Succeeded byBrendan Berne
Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia
In office
5 September 2008 – 26 June 2014
MonarchElizabeth II
Governors-GeneralDame Quentin Bryce (2008–14)
Sir Peter Cosgrove (2014)
Preceded byMalcolm Hazell
Succeeded byMark Fraser
Australian Ambassador to the Netherlands
In office
6 August 2004 – 14 April 2008
Preceded byPeter Hussin
Succeeded byLydia Morton
Australian Ambassador to Sweden
In office
19 May 1998 – 28 September 2003
Preceded byJudith Pead
Succeeded byRichard Rowe
Personal details
Born
Stephen Christopher Brady

(1959-06-11) 11 June 1959
London, United Kingdom
Domestic partnerPeter Stephens
Alma materAustralian National University

Stephen Christopher Brady AO, CVO (born 11 June 1959) is an Australian former career diplomat. In 1999, he and his partner Peter Stephens became the world's first officially acknowledged same sex ambassadorial couple, when they were presented to Queen Margrethe II of Denmark at the start of Brady's posting as Australian Ambassador to Denmark.[1] From September 2008 to June 2014 he was the Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia. During this time he was also Secretary of the Council of the Order of Australia and Secretary of the Bravery Decorations Council. In March 2014 his appointment as Ambassador to the French Republic, with concurrent accreditation to the Kingdom of Morocco, Algeria, Mauritania and the Principality of Monaco was announced.[2]

Early life

Brady was born in London on 11 June 1959 to Geoffrey Vincent Brady and his wife Susanne. The family moved to Australia in 1960, where Brady was educated at Canberra Grammar School and the Australian National University. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours in international relations in 1981.[3]

Career

Brady joined the Department of Foreign Affairs in 1982 as a graduate foreign service officer. Promoted in 1985 to the Office of Security and Intelligence Coordination in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, he was subsequently foreign policy adviser to two Leaders of the Opposition.[4] From 1990 – 1991 he was Counsellor and Chargé d'Affaires at the Australian Embassy in Dublin.[1]

From 1991 to 1996, he was head of the Guest of Government program in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet.[1] On two later occasions he was seconded from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) to work for the Prime Minister as a Senior Adviser.[3]

In December 1998, he was appointed Ambassador to Sweden with non-resident accreditation to Denmark, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.[5] He was Australia's Representative at three consecutive high level international conferences on combating intolerance and discrimination, held in Stockholm (2000–03).[1] In 2000 he headed Australia's delegation to the Plurilateral War Crimes Conference in Riga, Latvia.[3]

In February 1999, he made headlines as Australia's and the world's first openly gay ambassador when he formally presented his partner Peter Stephens to Queen Margrethe II of Denmark.[1][6][7] Stephens's passport was initially endorsed "Bearer is a member of the domestic household of the Ambassador", until Brady, who had been in a committed relationship with Stephens since 1982, insisted that it be changed.[1]

In February 2004, he was appointed Ambassador to the Netherlands. He was instrumental in coordinating arrangements with the Dutch government for Australia's joint military operation in Afghanistan which, according to Australian Chief of the Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, "he facilitated brilliantly".[1] Brady's diplomatic skills and remarkable and extensive network of connections were widely acknowledged.[8]

In December 2007, he led Australia's delegation to the International Criminal Court's Assembly of State Parties Conference at the UN in New York.[3]

He served as Australia's Permanent Representative to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague. In addition, he had responsibility for Australia's relationships with all international legal institutions based in The Hague. These included the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) and the International Court for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY).[9] On his return to Australia in March 2008 he was appointed Chief of Protocol in DFAT.[1]

On 5 September 2008, Stephen Brady was appointed Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia.[10] He served the entire term of Dame Quentin Bryce (2008–14) and into the early part of General Sir Peter Cosgrove's term (2014).

On 31 March 2014, his appointment as Australian Ambassador to France was announced.[11] In May 2015, he reportedly offered his resignation (which was not accepted) to Australia's DFAT after an incident in which he refused to follow an instruction given by the travelling party of the Australian Prime Minister, after his partner was told to stay in the car and not greet Prime Minister Tony Abbott at an unofficial airport arrival in France.[12] Prime Minister Abbott later described Brady as 'a fine servant of Australia.'[13]

Towards the end of his posting in Paris, the French State appointed Brady as a Commandeur of the Legion of Honour for his outstanding leadership of the bilateral relationship, only the second Australian civilian to receive the level of award after Sir Ninian Stephen, a former Governor-General.[14][15]

After completing his posting Brady has served on several boards and governing councils, including those for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, National Gallery of Australia and Bangarra Dance Theatre. He is also an adjunct professor at Bond University.[16]

Honours

Officer of the Order of Australia (AO)2015 Australia Day Honours. For distinguished service to successive Australian Governments, to international relations through senior diplomatic roles, to the fostering of security, economic and cultural initiatives, and as Official Secretary to the Governor-General.[17]
Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO)Appointed to the Royal Victorian Order and invested by Her Majesty The Queen at Government House, Canberra on 25 October 2011.[18]
Commander of the Order of St John17 November 2010. The Governor-General, as Prior of the Order of St John, conferred the Commander of the Order (CStJ) on Brady.[19]
Commander of the Order of Orange-Nassau (Netherlands)30 April 2009 by Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands for his ambassadorial success in The Netherlands. He was later invested with the insignia at the Dutch Embassy in Canberra by Ambassador Willem Andreae.[20]
Commander of the Order of the Crown (Tonga)22 October 2010 by King George Tupou V of Tonga during his visit to Australia.[21]
Commander of the Legion of Honour (France)Conferred 6 April 2017 by Foreign Minister Le Drian at the Quai d'Orsay.[14]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 "Envoys of Change". The Weekend Australian Magazine. 19–20 December 2009.
  2. ↑ Bishop, Julie (31 March 2014). "Ambassador to France" (Press release). Department of Foreign Affairs, Australian Government. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Stephen Christopher Brady". Who's Who in Australia Online. Connect Web. Archived from the original on 9 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
  4. ↑ Weller, P.; et al. (2011). From Postbox to Powerhouse: A Centenary History of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Allen & Unwin. pp. 107, 133, 155.
  5. ↑ Downer, Alexander (2 July 1998). "Diplomatic Appointment Ambassador to Sweden" (Press release). Australian Government. Archived from the original on 12 February 2014.
  6. ↑ Dennett, Harley (3 September 2008), "Queen's woman gets a new man", Sydney Star Observer, retrieved 11 October 2008
  7. ↑ Hein, John (1 February 1999), "Gay Ambassador and Hubby Meet Danish Queen", ScotsGay Magazine, archived from the original on 13 June 2020, retrieved 24 August 2010
  8. ↑ Middleton, K. (2011). An Unwinnable War. Melbourne University Press. pp. 172–174, 177–78, 181.
  9. ↑ Downer, Alexander (17 November 2003). "Diplomatic Appointment – Ambassador to the Netherlands" (Press release). Australian Government. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  10. ↑ Shanahan, Dennis (26 August 2008). "Diplomat with family ties gets $225,000 job". The Australian. Retrieved 11 October 2008.
  11. ↑ "Alexander Downer announced as Australia's high commissioner to the United Kingdom". Australia: ABC News. 31 March 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2014.
  12. ↑ Hartcher, Peter (5 May 2015). "Ambassador to France offers resignation after 'bizarre' Abbott airport incident". The Age. Retrieved 5 May 2015.
  13. ↑ McDonald, Susan (6 May 2015). "Tony Abbott says junior officials behind incident involving ambassador to France Stephen Brady". Australia: ABC News. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  14. 1 2 "Agenda hebdomadaire". France Diplomatie (Press release) (in French). Ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires étrangères. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  15. ↑ Aston, Joe (5 October 2017). "Outgoing ambassador Stephen Brady to be awarded French Legion of Honour". Australian Financial Review. Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  16. ↑ "Stephen Brady AO CVO". Linkedin. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
  17. ↑ "Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia in the General Division" (PDF). Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia. 26 January 2015. p. 4. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  18. ↑ Brady invested as Commander of the Royal Victorian Order
  19. ↑ GGP, 17 November 2010
  20. ↑ "Governor-General's Program – 5 June 2009". Governor-General website. Archived from the original on 5 March 2011. Retrieved 14 February 2011.
  21. ↑ GGP, 22 October 2010
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