Judges
Kate Thornley
Deputy Trade Commissioner for Europe and Country Director for France at the British Embassy in Paris
Kate Thornley is the Deputy Trade Commissioner for Europe and Country Director France at the British Embassy in Paris, a role she has held since April 2026.
Prior to this appointment, she served as Chief Negotiator for the UK–India trade negotiations, culminating in the conclusion of the UK–India trade agreement in 2025.
Kate joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 2011, and subsequently held a number of positions including postings to Pakistan and Brazil. In 2018, Kate joined the Department for Business and Trade as Deputy Director for Bilateral Trade Relations, where she was responsible for advancing the UK’s trade relationships across multiple regions. Kate is fluent in French, Portuguese and Spanish.
Damian Allinson
UK Trade Counsellor France at the British Embassy in Paris
Damian Allinson has served as the UK Trade Counsellor for France at the British Embassy Paris since June 2026. Prior to this, he spent a number of years posted to the Middle East: in Trade Director roles at the British Embassies in Baghdad & Riyadh; and as the UK’s first Trade Representative to Syria following the fall of the Assad regime.
Damian joined HM Government in 2018 after previously working as an EU policy advisor at EY. He held diplomatic roles in the FCO, DExEU and No10 as part of the team that negotiated the UK-EU deal, before joining DBT to lead HMG’s digital trade negotiations. Damian read History & French at the University of York and Université Francois-Rabelais, before completing a Masters in EU & International Relations at the Collège d’Europe.
Nicolas Huguet
President of the Franco-British Chamber
With more than twenty years of international experience in leading technology, media and telecommunications companies, Nicolas Huguet brings a wealth of expertise that will be a major asset in guiding the Chamber through its next phase of development.
Prior to his most recent role as CEO of BT France, he held a number of senior leadership positions in France and internationally, leading business transformation initiatives, driving commercial growth, and managing multicultural teams.
His experience at the intersection of innovation, digital transformation and international business will help strengthen the Franco-British Chamber’s profile and support its continued growth.
Catherine Le Yaounac OBE
General Manager of the Franco-British Chamber
Catherine has been the General Manager of the Franco-British Chamber since 1993, when she accepted the challenge of the Chamber's financial recovery, the creation of new services and the development of membership. Projects to which will be added include numerous innovations in event typology, the development of new digital media, and Brexit since 2016, which led to the creation in 2019 of the Think Tank, Cross-Channel Institute. The Franco-British Chamber is today one of the most dynamic chambers of commerce in the United Kingdom on European soil, and has been awarded numerous prizes (Events, Membership and Digital communication...). For her 20 years in the Chamber in 2013, her European peers awarded her "The Howard Rosen Special Award for Excellence". In February 2025, she was awarded an OBE for services to Franco-British trade. Catherine previously held positions in a Special Products Export Department of the Elf Atochem-Ceca group. She is also a board member for the “Fondation Franco-Britannique de la Colony de Sillery”.
The British Embassy in Paris
The British Embassy in Paris provides free support for UK companies selling to France and French investors expanding to the UK.
The Embassy provides links between business and government, with teams across policy, promotion, market access, trade and investment.
The Embassy drives economic growth by supporting Modern Industrial Strategy priority sectors to create jobs and opportunities across the UK.
Contact:
The Franco-British Chamber
Created in 1873, the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce & Industry is the oldest international chamber of commerce in France and Europe. Established for more than 150 years in Paris, then in the French regions, it offer its members – companies of all sizes, multi-sector and international – a wide range of tailor-made services to help them in their cross-Channel development.
The Franco-British Chamber is the premier Franco-British business network in France. You will find in the Chamber a solid interactive network of private and public partners in France and the United Kingdom.
Today, the Franco-British Chamber supports companies and brings together managers and independents – from entrepreneurs to Executives and CEOs of groups listed on the CAC 40 or FTSE 100 – to meet their business and relational expectations in the short, medium and long term.
Contact:
Sponsors
BDO
BDO is the world’s 5th largest audit and advisory network. The global network has more than 1,500 offices in 167 countries and more than 90,000 people providing advisory services throughout the world. Whether you are part of a multinational looking for some non-audit work to be undertaken, or a mid-market or entrepreneurial firm seeking a complete service offering, BDO offer award-winning services in auditing, tax and advisory services with proven results.
Range Rover
Range Rover – a demonstration of a unique relationship between automotive excellence, aesthetic authenticity, and exceptional experiences.
JLR is a British company building world class vehicles with unrivaled capabilities and tailored to meet the highest demand.
We've proudly created icons and a rich heritage spanning decades. Now is the moment we create the next chapter in our future.
We transformed into a House of Brands organization, to amplify the unique DNA of each of JLR’s celebrated British automotive brands - Range Rover, Defender, Discovery, and Jaguar, that embrace our modernist design philosophy and are emotionally compelling and unique.
Through our Reimagine strategy, we have set a clear vision and pathway to become the proud creators of modern luxury.
This is the roadmap for the transformation of JLR into a sustainable, electric-first modern luxury business: we will achieve our carbon reduction targets in 2030 and carbon net zero goals by 2039 and always strive to exceed our clients’ expectations through creating exceptional experiences for the world’s most discerning clients.
Bupa Global
Bupa Global offers health plans to support individuals, families and businesses who are looking for the highest level of cover available from Bupa. We provide our customers with premium international plans which provide outstanding benefits and flexibility, giving them direct access to leading specialists and medical providers, at home or abroad.
Bupa Global is part of Bupa, an international healthcare company, dedicated to helping people live longer, healthier, happier lives and making a better world.