David Concar, UK Envoy to the Commonwealth of Nations within the Foreign Office.

Providing security during November’s Commonwealth summit will be “very challenging”, especially following the recent Tunisia beach attack, but a British envoy assured there will be no complacency.

David Concar, the UK Envoy to the Commonwealth of Nations within the Foreign Office, said risk assessments were being conducted and they were working closely with the Maltese government to ensure everybody was safe.

“We cannot roll over and have a lesser CHOGM or not gather [in Malta], as we’ll be giving in to terrorists bent on undermining us; we won’t bend in that way,” he said.

Any event involving the royal family always poses security concerns, and the fact that four British royals – the Queen, her husband Prince Philip, her son Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall – as well as numerous heads of state will be descending on the island, just adds to the headache.

Although reluctant to give away too many details, Mr Concar was unfazed and said: “We’re on track to deliver what is required. Nothing has happened to cause us to be alarmed.”

We need to move away from the endless discussions on secondary issues and agree on the big things

He is actually looking at the summit as an opportunity to discuss global security and its role in countering the radicalisation of young people who were travelling to conflict zones and joining the Islamic State militant group (also known as Isis).

“We want to prevent that and be resilient in the face of extremism,” he said.

Mr Concar was briefing the Maltese press who were in the UK as part of a familiarisation visit, headed by Phyllis Muscat, chairwoman of the CHOGM task force.

He expressed his gratitude that Malta had stepped in and offered to organise the summit after Mauritius backed out when its Prime Minister refused to attend 2013’s CHOGM over Sri Lanka’s human rights situation.

Mr Concar said he was in Malta last month and came away “even more convinced” preparations were on track and “very well advanced” on policy and inter-governmental meetings.

Many have recently been questioning the relevance of CHOGM; a mix of 53 member countries with seemingly little in common except colonial links to Britain. Prime Minister Joseph Muscat too had urged the Commonwealth to reform or risk becoming irrelevant, but this year promises hope for change.

One important topic on the agenda is climate change, especially since CHOGM, being held between November 27 and 29, comes just days before the anticipated UN Climate Change Conference in Paris.

Asked if he felt the Paris conference would overshadow CHOGM, Mr Concar felt the two were complementary and the timing provided the perfect platform to try and influence the debate.

Migration – a big topic for Europe and Africa – would also be on the agenda, and although Mr Concar was unable to say what aspect of this complex issue “should or could be usefully discussed” at the summit, he was sure certain elements would be addressed.

Other issues important to the Commonwealth included the pressures and vulnerabilities small states faced, as well as common difficulties such as raising capital and finance.

“We need world leaders to attend and decide on matters that really matter. We need to move away from the endless discussions on secondary issues and agree on the big things by issuing a statement that reflects what leaders talked about instead of a 100-page communiqué about what leaders didn’t talk about,” Mr Concar said.

“It is helpful to see Malta thinks the same way and we hope the Maltese government can persuade leaders to agree on a format to present the deliverables.”

Mr Concar said a big indicator of CHOGM’s success was if it managed to bridge the divide between north and south, rich and poor, and agreeing on things of substance.

“We have to show the world we have an equal footing and an equal voice that cuts across that divide – that’ll be the litmus test of success.”

The summit is also being held a few months before the appointment of a new secretary general, who will take over from Kamalesh Sharma, and this, he felt, would have an impact on the Commonwealth’s next chapter.

“We need a reform-minded secretary general with political influence to bridge the divide. He needs to possess the ability to command the attention of world leaders and have the moral courage to stand up and say we should do this together.”

The familiarisation trip included meetings with Mr Sharma and Lord Jonathan Marland, who chairs the Commonwealth Enterprise and Investment Council, at Marlborough House; Malta’s High Commissioner to the UK Norman Hamilton; the communication teams of Clarence House and Buckingham Palace; as well as visits to the House of Commons and House of Lords.