Launching the Ethical Foreign Policy was certainly easier than implementing it and there are many who would say that Labour failed to see this through. I would say that it was a noble but an unrealistic goal.

As far as the Conservative party is concerned, our approach to foreign affairs will be, as David Cameron has put it, both liberal and Conservative.

Liberal – because Britain must be open and engaged with the world, and play our full part in making that world a better place for the rest of humanity. We will support human rights and champion the cause of democracy and the rule of law at every opportunity.

But our policy will also be Conservative – hard-headed and practical, dealing with the world as it is and not as we wish it was.

Foreign policy is one of those areas where we are in agreement on many issues, such as the need to stabilise Afghanistan, not to allow Iran to become a nuclear state and to see the Middle East Peace process succeed.

When our goals are the same and converge we want to ensure that we work together to ensure that they are achieved. On other occasions, like on the future of the EU, where we do not see eye to eye, we make our case strongly and work to persuade the government to take a different approach.