“The world is a dangerous divided place, and this is a tough, geopolitical moment with huge challenges for Britain, but I’m excited about the project which is reconnecting Britain with the global community,” he said in his vast new office at the heart of the Victorian-era Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office building in Whitehall.

For years, the UK has been caught up in “an inward-looking conversation”, he said, as the impact of the Brexit referendum and years of troubled efforts to implement it soaked up political energy.

Now, that must end: “Britain has to start reconnecting with the world.” Resetting relations with Europe is a particular priority and his first trip abroad this weekend will take him to Germany, Poland and Sweden, to meet his counterpart in each country. He will then travel on to a Nato summit in Washington, with prime minister Keir Starmer.

“Let us put the Brexit years behind us. We are not going to rejoin the single market and the customs union but there is much that we can do together,” he said. “I want to be absolutely clear, European nations are our friends.”