MI6 Bot: New CSSF contractor profile (bot)

2026-10-20T17:29:46Z

New CSSF contractor profile (bot)

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{{short description|'''Oxfordshire programme-management consultancy set up in 2021 by former UK ambassador Chris O'Connor and former special forces officer Chris Fisher; on CSSF framework Lots 1 and 3'''}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Talisman International Limited
| type = Private limited company
| founded = 21 December 2021
| founder = [[Chris O'Connor (1968)|Chris O'Connor]]; [[Chris Fisher (1975)|Chris Fisher]]
| registration_id = Companies House 13811024
| status = Active
| headquarters = First Floor, 1 Des Roches Square, Witan Way, Witney, Oxfordshire OX28 4BE (registered office)
| services = Programme design, adaptation, "real-time evaluation" and analysis for government programmes
| key_people = [[Chris O'Connor (1968)|Christopher Paul O'Connor OBE]] (director); [[Chris Fisher (1975)|Christopher John Fisher MBE]] (director)
| website = [https://talismaninternational.co.uk/ talismaninternational.co.uk]
}}
'''[[Talisman International]]''' (Talisman International Limited, Companies House no. 13811024) is a small consultancy registered in Witney, Oxfordshire. It was incorporated on 21 December 2021 with SIC code 70229 (management consultancy other than financial management).<ref name="CH13811024">Companies House, [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/13811024 TALISMAN INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, company number 13811024] ''GOV.UK'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> Its two directors and equal owners are [[Chris O'Connor (1968)|Chris O'Connor]], a former British ambassador to Tunisia, and [[Chris Fisher (1975)|Chris Fisher]]. The company says Fisher was "a UK Special Forces commander in Afghanistan".<ref name="TalismanSite">Talisman, [https://talismaninternational.co.uk/ Navigating Complexity] ''Talisman International'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> Talisman is a supplier on Lots 1 and 3 of the 2023–27 [[Conflict, Stability and Security Fund]] (CSSF) framework, where it is listed as "Talisman (Oxford)".<ref name="FTS2023">Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, [https://www.find-tender.service.gov.uk/Notice/029743-2023 Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) Framework Agreement (2023-2027): contract award notice 029743-2023] ''Find a Tender Service'', 9 October 2023.</ref><ref name="BidstatsCSSF">BidStats, [https://bidstats.uk/tenders/2023/W41/808321450 Conflict, Stability and Security Fund (CSSF) (2023): award notice summary] ''BidStats'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> CSSF programme summaries name it as the "commercial partner" for maritime security consultancy in the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean programmes.

== Revolving door ==
Talisman is an example of the [[Revolving door|revolving door]] between the [[Foreign and Commonwealth Office]] and the private contractors that deliver its conflict and security programmes. Its directors' official backgrounds are as follows:
* '''Chris O'Connor''' (Christopher Paul O'Connor OBE, born 18 December 1968) was British Ambassador to Tunisia from 2008 to 2013, then Consul-General in Los Angeles from 2013 to 2017.<ref name="WikiOConnor">Wikipedia, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chris_O%27Connor_(diplomat) Chris O'Connor (diplomat)] ''Wikipedia'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> In October 2012 the FCO announced that Hamish Cowell would succeed "Mr Christopher Paul O’Connor" in Tunis in July 2013.<ref name="FCO2012">Foreign & Commonwealth Office, [https://www.gov.uk/government/news/change-of-her-majesty-s-ambassador-to-tunisia Change of Her Majesty’s Ambassador to Tunisia] ''GOV.UK'', 25 October 2012.</ref> Talisman's website adds that he was "deputy UK Ambassador to Lebanon" and led "a specialist UK government team to develop pathways to peace in the Middle East".<ref name="TalismanSite" /> The Companies House birth month and year (December 1968) match his Wikipedia entry.
* '''Chris Fisher''' (Christopher John Fisher MBE, born October 1975). The company says he has "a wealth of experience at the strategic and operational level within the UK MOD, including as a UK Special Forces commander in Afghanistan and Director of Strategic Leadership at the UK Defence Academy", and that he "acted as a senior advisor to the UN’s Ebola Response".<ref name="TalismanSite" /> These are the company's own claims and have not been independently confirmed. His honour has not been checked against the London Gazette.

Before Talisman International, the two men were designated members of '''Talisman Group LLP''' (OC431367). It was registered on 2 April 2020 at The Old Chapel, Union Way, Witney OX28 6HD, and dissolved on 28 February 2023. Its third member was Fisher's company '''Aequi Libra Limited''' (11056552; incorporated 9 November 2017, dissolved 9 July 2024). By the time Aequi Libra was dissolved, its registered office was in the care of KRE Corporate Recovery Limited, Reading.<ref name="CHTalismanLLP">Companies House, [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/OC431367 TALISMAN GROUP LLP, OC431367] and [https://find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk/company/11056552 AEQUI LIBRA LIMITED, 11056552] ''GOV.UK'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref> Talisman International's own registered office was at 264 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7DY until 20 September 2022. It was then at The Old Chapel, Union Way, Witney until 6 November 2023, when it moved to Des Roches Square.<ref name="CH13811024" /> The website still in use carries logos hosted on a "talismanllp.com" domain.<ref name="TalismanSite" />

== CSSF and other UK government work ==
=== Bay of Bengal Maritime Security Pilot (2022–23) ===
The FCDO-led CSSF Bay of Bengal Maritime Security Pilot ran from April 2022 to March 2023, with £0.2m ODA and £0.9m non-ODA. It lists "Maritime Security Consultancy Support" with Talisman International as the "Commercial Partner", worth £0.05m non-ODA. The other components went to the [[United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime|UNODC]] Global Maritime Crime Programme, "[[Torchlight]] Group/[[Royal United Services Institute for Defence Studies|Royal United Services Institute (RUSI)]]" and the Royal Navy Maritime Domain Awareness Team.<ref name="PSBoB">Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, [https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/677669dc02c3076590308cf6/Bay_of_Bengal_Maritime_Security_Pilot_Programme_Summary_2022_to_2023.odt Bay of Bengal Maritime Security Pilot Programme Summary 2022 to 2023] ''GOV.UK'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref>

=== Indian Ocean Maritime Security Programme (2023–25) ===
The successor CSSF Indian Ocean Maritime Security (IOMS) Programme runs from April 2023 to March 2025, with a 2023–24 budget of £1.5m, all non-ODA. Its countries are Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Sri Lanka and the British Indian Ocean Territory. For the "Deepening Security Cooperation" component (Regional Maritime Security Centre of Excellence and Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative, forum enablement, gender research, climate security), the summary lists [[King's College London|King’s College, London (KCL)]], the National Maritime Foundation (India) and "Talisman International Limited" as implementers. That component's 2023–24 budget is £0.35m.<ref name="PSIOMS">Conflict, Stability and Security Fund, [https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/67982cd8cfd3deafa04fded6/Indian_Ocean_Maritime_Security_Programme_Summary_2023_to_2024.odt Indian Ocean Maritime Security Programme Summary 2023 to 2024] ''GOV.UK'', accessed 20 October 2026.</ref>

=== FCDO payments ===
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|+ FCDO payments over £25,000 to Talisman International Limited
! Date !! Expense type (as published) !! Amount (£)
|-
| 8 April 2024 || Project Management || 26,038.00
|-
| 14 May 2024 || Project Management || 31,570.00
|-
| '''Total''' || || '''57,608.00'''
|}
<ref name="FCOspend">Foreign and Commonwealth Office, [https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/foreign-office-spend-over-25000 FCO departmental spending over £25,000] ''GOV.UK'', 2010–2020; Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, [https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/fcdo-departmental-spending-over-25000 FCDO: departmental spending over £25,000] ''GOV.UK'', 2020–2025.</ref>
No Contracts Finder award to Talisman has been found. Payments below £25,000 are not published, so the total above is a minimum.

== Finances ==
Talisman files micro-entity accounts. For the year to 31 December 2025 it reported net assets of £2,392 (2024: £1,968), two employees, and creditors due within one year of £79,210 (2024: £237,310). No profit and loss account was filed.<ref name="CH13811024" />

== People ==
{| class="wikitable"
! Name !! Role !! Appointed !! Born !! Residence (as registered)
|-
| [[Chris O'Connor (1968)|Christopher Paul O'Connor]] || Director; PSC (25–50% shares and votes) || 21 December 2021 || December 1968 || Canada
|-
| [[Chris Fisher (1975)|Christopher John Fisher]] || Director; PSC (25–50% shares and votes) || 21 December 2021 || October 1975 || England
|}
<ref name="CH13811024" />
The register shows both men appointed, removed and reappointed on 21 December 2021. The reason is not stated.

Candidate director pages: [[Chris O'Connor (1968)]] and [[Chris Fisher (1975)]].

== Gaps ==
* No Contracts Finder or Find a Tender call-off notices for Talisman have been found, so the work behind the 2024 payments is unidentified.
* Fisher's military and Defence Academy career is self-reported. His MBE has not been checked in the London Gazette.
* The Bay of Bengal and IOMS summaries do not give Talisman's own contract value.

== See also ==
* [[Revolving door]]
* [[:Category:UK Revolving Door]]
* [[Conflict, Stability and Security Fund]]
* [[:Category:CSSF Contractors]]

==Notes==
<references/>

[[Category:CSSF Contractors]]
[[Category:UK Revolving Door]]
[[Category:Consultancies]]

Talisman International - Revision history

MI6 Bot: New CSSF contractor profile (bot)