1. What sort of Japanese people visit the UK these days? Are their numbers on the increase?

There are around 20,000 Japanese people, including their families, stationed in the UK on business. Students make up the rest. There are roughly 20,000 Japanese studying at British universities and language schools. As for long-term and permanent residents, there are slightly more than 14,000 people. In addition, around 300,000 Japanese citizens visit the UK every year for tourism or short business trips. That said, the number of Japanese living here has declined somewhat recently. In the case of students, one of the reasons has been the difficulty in obtaining visas, while for businesses the tough economic conditions since the Lehman crisis have resulted in retrenchment by some Japanese companies.

2. What sort of advice do you give Japanese people in the UK?

The Embassy and Consulate mainly provide public safety information. In particular, we publicise through our website and emails the types of crimes which often affect Japanese people. Burglary is one of the main types of such crime. Then there are muggings, and where there are a number of Japanese victims we publish details of the places and times in which they often occur and measures that people can take to avoid them. Recently many people have been taken in by internet and email scams, so we warn people about such dangers. Another major concern is terrorism. As there have been a number of incidents in the UK, we make available information that might not otherwise be available. This is not to say that we are providing special intelligence, but that we collate data on terrorism made public by the British or other governments and publicise it on our homepage or by email so that Japanese residents can be forewarned.

As for other matters, we circulate information on such things as influenza or flight information in circumstances like when the volcano erupted in Iceland. Overall, though, our main concern is public safety and our desire to ensure that Japanese people do not become the victims of crime.

3. What kind of incidents crop up most frequently?

The most frequent telephone calls concern incidents of pick-pocketing and baggage theft, with tourists falling victim in crowded restaurants and pubs. The best-known tourist spot where pick-pocketing is often reported is the British Museum, in front of the Egyptian Mummies. We also get reports of theft from people's bags during the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace.

4. Are there any scams in the UK which specifically target Japanese people?

The best-known scam, and one which has occurred recently, involves theft by someone dressed as a policeman. Typically, one or two Japanese students or tourists are walking in the street and are approached by a young woman holding a map and asking directions. Then a plain-clothes police officer arrives, seemingly on the lookout for drugs or investigating illegal currency exchange. He then asks the young woman with the map to show him her ID, saying "Show me your wallet, show me your credit card", and when the credit card is produced he asks for the PIN number, and the young woman complies with everything requested. He then asks the Japanese to do the same, and witnessing what happens with the young woman they feel they had better act identically. While going through this routine, the credit card is surreptitiously stolen. Within 30 minutes, cash is withdrawn from the account at an ATM.

In fact, thanks to cooperation between the Embassy and the police as well as cooperation among the victims, this spring one such criminal was arrested and subsequently convicted. However, it is not the case that there is only one criminal group at large, and we sometimes encounter others. Just yesterday, in fact, the head of our section was accosted by fake policeman at Hyde Park Corner. However, as he was familiar with such tricks, no harm was done.

Then there are cases such as when a man claiming to be British becomes friendly with a Japanese woman via a dating site and has her send him money but she is requested to send the money to an account in Malaysia and he gives various reasons for this. Cunning, isn't it? The whole process takes up to a year.

It¡Çs a clever trick, done over and over again, and there have been cases of people being cheated out of a total of 10 million yen.

5. What has particularly struck you about the UK or British people?

We have had contact with the police, hospitals and charity organisations in the UK on a number of occasions, and the importance placed on human rights in this country was very apparent.

Here's one example. There was a homeless Japanese woman. She had been assisted by a charity organisation for around four years after becoming homeless in this country. We thought she had permanent residence in the UK but when we checked her status with the UK Border Agency (UKBA) it turned out that she had been refused permanent residence and thus could not have access to public services in this country. However, a charity organisation helped her, not only by providing her with food, clothing and shelter but, for instance, agreeing to pay the charge levied by the Embassy for issuing her with a passport. Moreover, that same organisation even went so far as to engage a lawyer on her behalf so as to mount a public challenge to the UKBA. As for the Embassy, we could assist her if she were returning to Japan but could not do so as regards her time in the UK. Thus that charity organisation really did it's best for her. They did not simply abandon her because she was not qualified to be in this country but followed her case closely. I found this fascinating, not to say moving.