Lord David Frost, a recent convert and the UK’s chief negotiator for exiting the European Union, has written in the Daily Telegraph about his conversion and what he believes is driving a resurgence in Catholic belief.
The article, entitled “Britain is quietly awakening to full-fat supernatural Christianity”, acknowledges the faulty YouGov data which led a Bible Society report to assert that the UK was in the midst of a “quiet revival”. However, Frost points out that even if the report was inaccurate, there are plenty of other examples which suggest there is a resurgence in interest in Christianity. Bible sales doubling, footballers opening up about their faith and a record number of adult converts at Easter make it difficult to deny that Christianity is on the rise in the UK.
Frost also points out that churches have not experienced this growth in the same ways, noting that the “impact seems mainly confined to two domains: Protestant evangelicals and Catholics”. The reason for this, he concludes, is that this is where “full-fat supernatural Christianity is still generally preached”.
He cites the availability of Christian voices online as a significant part of this call to conversion, highlighting in particular Bishop Robert Barron, founder of Word on Fire Ministries, and the lesser-known evangelist Glen Scrivener, who currently serves as director at Speak Life.
He also points to weariness with secular culture and the “growing dysfunction in society starting with the pandemic” as influences pushing people, particularly the young, towards the Church.
Frost converted to Catholicism in 2025. Having been baptised a Methodist and having identified as part of the Church of England at university, where he studied French and history at St John’s College, Oxford, Frost subsequently “drifted away” from his faith when his working life began.
He joined the Diplomatic Service in 1987 and held a range of roles, including postings in Brussels and Paris, and work on European and economic policy. During his civil service career, he served as director for Europe, trade and international affairs in the Prime Minister’s Office under David Cameron.
After leaving the civil service in 2013, Frost moved into the private sector, working for the Scotch Whisky Association and later as chief executive of the organisation from 2013 to 2016. He subsequently became a special adviser to Boris Johnson during Johnson’s tenure as foreign secretary, before returning to government as Europe adviser when Johnson became Prime Minister in 2019.
As the UK’s chief Brexit negotiator, Frost led talks with the European Union that resulted in the Withdrawal Agreement and later the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, which set the terms for the post-Brexit relationship. He was appointed to the House of Lords in 2020 as Baron Frost of Allenton and took on ministerial responsibility for implementing the agreements and overseeing UK–EU relations.
During the pandemic, he became interested again in Christianity and began a journey which ultimately led to his reception into the Catholic Church. Reading Rod Dreher, Bishop Barron and Bishop Erik Varden, as well as the Gospels, he became convinced of the truth of Catholicism, noting in particular sacramentalism and the centrality of the Catholic Church in Western civilisation.
Since his Easter reception, Frost has taken a prominent role in debates on protecting the most vulnerable in society. He led opposition to Kim Leadbeater’s assisted suicide bill in the House of Lords, warning that it had the potential to dismantle the entire “inherited ethical” framework of the UK.
