Former British Ambassador to the US Sir Christopher Meyer has died aged 78.
According to the Daily Mail, the former diplomat suffered a stroke while on holiday with his wife Catherine in the French Alps.
Confirming her death on Twitter, current Ambassador Karen Pierce wrote: “Very sad to see that former British Ambassador to the US Christopher Meyer has passed away.
“He was one of my predecessors, but I first met him 30 years ago when we served under Robin Renwick.
“He was a wonderful diplomat and a wonderful character. All our thoughts are on Catherine and his family.”
Sir Christopher served as ambassador to the United States for six years from 1997, having previously served as press secretary to then Conservative Prime Minister John Major from 1994 to 1996.
His memoir, DC Confidential, released in 2005, focuses on his time in Washington and heavily criticizes Tony Blair for his handling of the period leading up to the Iraq War.
That conflict was a dominant feature of George W Bush’s presidency, but when Sir Christopher first met him, he said he was faced with a politician with a limited view of the world.
“” Bush acknowledged that, outside of Mexico, he did not know much about international affairs and that he would do well to broaden his experience. “
George W. Bush (R) smiles after receiving a bust of Sir Winston Churchill from British Ambassador to the United States Christopher Meyer in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington in 2001
After retiring from the diplomatic service, Sir Christopher served as chairman of the Press Complaints Commission from 2003 to 2009, when his time coincided with the phone hacking scandal and the 2007 arrest of the reporter. News of the World, Clive Goodman, and coroner. , Glenn Mulcaire.
As the size of the scandal grew, he was criticized for not bringing more people to account, despite lacking the actual authority to do so.
In 2018, he was hospitalized after being attacked by a teenager at Victoria Station.
