ROBERT H. TUTTLE

'Robert Holmes Tuttle' is the United States Ambassador to the Court of St. James's in the United Kingdom, a post he has held since July 2005.^[1]US embassy close to admitting Syria rendition flight, ''The Guardian'', December 27 2005
A California native, he was appointed Ambassador by US President George W. Bush, having previously worked in the White House during the Reagan administration as an Assistant to the President in 1982, and Director of Presidential Personnel in 1985. The Ambassador was also on the Board of Directors of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. He is a graduate of Stanford University, and earned his MBA at the University of Southern California. Tuttle is a partner in a car dealership based in Beverly Hills, California, and is married to Maria Denise Hummer. He has two daughters from a previous marriage.

Contents

Controversy over traffic tickets

References

Controversy over traffic tickets

Tuttle is perhaps most widely known for his (and the US Embassy's) refusal to pay the London congestion charge^[2]. The embassy has claimed that the charge is a form of taxation, and diplomats and their staff are therefore exempt under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Transport for London, which is headed by the Mayor, considers the charge to be a fee for services, and points out that other embassies in London pay it, and US embassies in other cities pay similar road charges. The embassy says that the decision to stop paying was made before Tuttle became Ambassador, although the embassy only ceased payment after he took up the post.
In March 2006, Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, said that Tuttle was trying to "skive out of [paying] like some chiselling little crook"^[3]. A survey published in 2007 showed that the United States owes £1.5m in outstanding congestion charge payments. Mayor Livingstone again chided Tuttle, and called him a "venal little crook" for his refusal to pay^[4] .
According to the survey, the US Embassy is the "worst offender" out of the top 10, but other countries on the list include Nigeria, Sudan, Japan, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Germany, and Zimbabwe.

References

1. Ambassador Robert Holmes Tuttle US embassy in UK bio on Tuttle
2. Livingstone hits out at US ambassador, ''Politics.co.uk'', March 28 2006
3. 41520 British Press Review: BBC News, 28 March 2006, ''Britain USA'', March 28 2006
4. Diplomatic C-charge bill tops £4.5m, ''channel4.com'', June 22 2007