The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth
Patricia Scotland was born in Dominica and grew up in London. Aged 20 she completed her law degree, and at 21 was called to the bar.
She was the first woman to be Attorney-General for England and Wales, and is the first female Commonwealth Secretary-General.
In government her responsibilities included gender equality, domestic violence, forced marriage, and international child abduction, and she promoted diversity and equality of opportunity, particularly for women and girls.
Serving the 54 Commonwealth nations her emphasis is on tackling climate change and its disproportionate impact on women, building resilience in smaller or more vulnerable countries – particularly through women’s enterprise, and eliminating domestic violence and violence against women and girls.