Daniel is a natural collaborator and experienced policy professional with an eye for the big picture. He has valuable international experience in developing strategic policy.

Daniel joined us in 2022, bringing expertise from working in the British and New Zealand governments on strategic and international policy. He has a highly developed awareness of political context and the practical realities of government policy, and is adept at spotting and managing emerging risks.

With a fine-tuned understanding of the needs of Ministers and other leaders, Daniel has a proven record of high-quality written and verbal advice. Collaborative by default, he’s also skilled in bringing stakeholders along on the policy journey and communicating complicated advice to decision makers.

Daniel has in-depth knowledge of trade, tariff, and customs issues – he has worked on a range of policies for the UK’s Department for International Trade and Department for Exiting the European Union, as well as for New Zealand’s Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

He also has a detailed understanding of the machinery of government and policy processes, having advised a number of Ministers. Most recently as policy manager at the Department for International Trade in the UK in 2020–21, he successfully navigated diverging positions across government, Ministers, and domestic and international stakeholders.

When he’s not working, Daniel enjoys hiking, spear fishing, and cooking. He recently completed the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage.

Examples of Daniel’s work

• Developing the UK’s first Most Favoured Nation tariff since it joined the European single market in the 1970s

• Preparing the UK government’s contingency measures in tariff policy in case a Brexit agreement wasn’t reached before the deadline

• Developing a UK trade position on Geographical Indications, a totemic and highly contentious policy as the country moved beyond membership with the EU

• Establishing a secretariat function for green investment principles for China’s Belt and Road initiative, to support UK financiers to prove their investments were sustainable

• Leading the passage through the New Zealand Parliament of a complicated bill that carefully balanced competing interests, the Trade (Anti-dumping and Countervailing Duties) Amendment Bill.

Daniel’s qualifications

Daniel has a BCom in Public Policy and Economics, and a BA in Political Science and International Relations, both from Victoria University of Wellington.