KUALA LUMPUR : British High Commissioner to Malaysia, His Excellency Charles Hay MVO hosted a grand reception in Kuala Lumpur on Thursday to celebrate Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee and 96th birthday. The guest of honour representing the Malaysian Government was Yang Berhormat Tengku Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz, the Minister of Finance.

The event kicked off with the minister leading a toast to the good health and wellbeing of Her Majesty The Queen. Hay then reciprocated with a toast to DYMM Seri Paduka Baginda Yang Di-Pertuan Agong.   

In his speech, Hay paid tribute to The Queen and her dedication to serving the people of the UK and the Commonwealth. He said, “The most important facet of Her Majesty’s reign is her sense of duty and tireless devotion to a life of service.”

“Through the seven decades of her reign, The Queen has been an important source of stability and strength for the UK. She has transcended politics, change of government, wars, and pandemic,” he added.

Hay also spoke about the close relationship between Her Majesty’s Government with the Malaysian Government. He said, “The UK and Malaysia have a deep shared history, which today has flourished into a modern day partnership where both countries are working collaboratively across areas of mutual interest.”

According to Hay, the UK has contributed a total of £15 million in the last three years alone to implement economic partnership programmes with Malaysia. Bilateral trade between the UK and Malaysia totalled over £5 billion with the UK seeking to grow priority sectors like education, technology, smart cities and healthcare.

In his speech, Hay also used the Malay proverb “Berat sama dipikul, ringan sama dijinjing” and voiced support to Ukrainian Ambassador Olexander Nechytaylo and the Ukrainian people at a time when Ukraine is defending against Russia’s aggression.

The reception was attended by over 800 guests including members of the Malaysian royalty; senior representatives from ministries, youth and non-government organisations, diplomatic corps and business community. Her Majesty the Raja Permaisuri Agong also graced the event. The Yang di-Pertuan Agong and the Raja Permaisuri Agong met The Queen at Buckingham Palace during a special visit to the UK in 2019.  

Guests who attended the reception were treated to a showcase of British culture and pageantry, the best of British food, performances by the Great British Circus, as well as a selection of hit songs in the UK spanning 70 years of The Queen’s reign. Also on display were portraits of The Queen by Malaysian pencil artiste Hakim Abdullah and digital artwork by British artist Rachel Gray.

Hay expressed gratitude to numerous sponsors, especially Sime Darby Properties, YTL Corporation, Eco World, HSBC, AirAsia, JW Marriott, as well as a host of other partners who supported the event.