Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to the Government's publication A pro-innovation approach to AI regulation, published on 29 March 2023, how much and what proportion of the budget of each regulator in their Department was spent on regulation of artificial intelligence in the latest period for which information is available; how many staff in each regulator worked (a) wholly and (b) partly on those issues in the latest period for which information is available; and whether those regulators plan to increase resources for their work on artificial intelligence.
Answered by Anne-Marie Trevelyan - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As Artificial Intelligence (AI) systems become more powerful, and are put to different use, they will create new opportunities, challenges and risks. The UK Government recognises it will need to act and adapt the way we regulate technologies like AI that are playing an increasingly vital role in our economy and society. The FCDO does not oversee the work of any regulators. As a global leader in AI, the UK plays an important role in shaping the international AI governance debate and promoting the UK's regulatory framework and values in international fora, such as the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, the Council of Europe, Global Partnership on AI and UNESCO.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many officials in her Department are working in the Counter Disinformation Unit.
Answered by James Cleverly - Home Secretary
Addressing the challenges of disinformation and misinformation is a whole-of-Government effort, and FCDO works on this closely with all relevant Departments, including the Counter Disinformation Unit (CDU) in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.
The CDU is a standing unit that draws on a range of expertise from across government, social media platforms and disinformation specialists in academia and civil society to lead the fight against misinformation and disinformation.
It would not be appropriate to comment on operational details such as staffing levels publicly as doing so would give malign actors insight into our capabilities. However staffing requirements are continually reviewed to ensure appropriate levels of resourcing, including surge capacity where needed.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what estimate he has made of the level of UK-produced steel procured by his Department and associated departmental public bodies and agencies in (a) 2019-20 and (b) 2020-21.
Answered by Nigel Adams
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office did not procure steel domestically or internationally in 2019-20 and 2020-21.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many non-executive directors of his Department who were in post before May 2015 have since left the Department's board; what the names and length of tenure of such directors were; and how many and what non-executive director appointments he has made since May 2010.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
No non-executive directors have left the Foreign and Commonwealth Office since May 2015. Since May 2010, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has made three Board level non-executive director appointments, and renewed one contract. These were: 01/11/2011 Richard Lambert (Supervisory Board) 01/12/2011 (contract renewal) Rudy Markham (Supervisory Board, Management Board, Audit and Risk Committee) 01/03/2012 – 31/03/2015 Heather Rabbatts (Supervisory Board) 24/04/2012 Julia Bond (Supervisory Board, Management Board, Senior Appointments Board) In this period the Foreign and Commonwealth Office also recruited two non-executive members to its Audit and Risk Committee. These were: 16/03/2011 Stephen Hawker (Audit and Risk Committee) 16/03/2011 Ann Cormack (Audit and Risk Committee)Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many recruitment and employment agencies his Department has used to source staff in each year since 2010-11.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Civil Service-wide Recruitment Freeze was introduced in May 2010, which limits new appointments to front-line and business critical roles only, this usually means specialist roles.
The number of recruitment and employment agencies we have used for external recruitment in the UK from financial year 2010-11 onwards is:
2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15
7 4 8 6 2
Recruitment agencies are used to recruit for positions that require specialist skills and expertise not available elsewhere in the organisation.
The FCO also has a separate contract in place with Hays Specialist Recruitment for the provision of temporary staff for essential frontline roles whilst internal recruitment processes take place.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department has spent on (a) taxis, (b) first class train tickets and (c) business class air travel in each of the last five years.
Answered by David Lidington
The following table details spend on Taxis, First Class rail and Business Class air travel. Spend on First Class rail and Business Class air travel is through our contract with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) travel management company, Hogg Robinson Group plc.
Travel tickets booked directly by members of staff could only be collated at disproportionate cost.
2010/11: Taxis: £318,689; First Class Train: £38,081; Business Class Air: £4,785,512
2011/12: Taxis: £329,042; First Class Train: £24,455; Business Class Air: £5,167,379
2012/13: Taxis: £348,733; First Class Train: £19,724; Business Class Air: £6,103,300
2013/14: Taxis: £403,856; First Class Train: £1,590; Business Class Air: £5,421,348
2014- October ’14: Taxis: £135,174; First Class Train: £313; Business Class Air: £2,952,555
FCO Policy is that public transport should be used whenever possible.
Like all Government Departments, the FCO ensures we use taxpayers' money very carefully to help reduce the overall costs of Government. Staff are therefore only allowed to use taxis in exceptional circumstances: when public transport is not available, or when their line manager agrees that taking a taxi will help keep a staff member safe during unsocial hours. In addition to approver checks, expense claims are subject to retrospective audit checks.
FCO staff travelling by air are required to book the lowest fare possible, subject to budget holder approval Business class travel may be used when it is the more cost-effective option, if staff are required to work immediately upon arrival or on medical grounds.
All FCO staff are directed to use standard class for rail travel unless there are exceptional circumstances e.g. illness, disability or where first class facilities are essential for working while travelling. In these exceptional circumstances, prior line management approval must be given.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate he has made of the cost of (a) fraud and (b) financial error in (i) his Department, (ii) its executive agencies and (iii) its non-departmental public bodies in each of the last five years.
Answered by David Lidington
Before 2012/13 fraud data was published within the HM Treasury Fraud Report or estimated in the National Fraud Authority Annual Fraud Indicators. From 2012/13 figures on fraud and financial error have been provided to the Cabinet Office as part of the Quarterly Data Summary returns, for Central Departments, and all Arms Length Bodies who receive over £100m public funding per annum.
The reported cost of fraud and error for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office is set out in the table below:
| Department | Agency | NDPB | ||||
| FCO | FCO Services | Wilton Park | British Council | Great Britain China Centre | Westminster Foundation for Democracy | Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission |
2013/2014 | £1,405 | £12 | £0 | £163 | £0 | £0 | £0 |
2012/2013 | £1,115 | £0 | £0 | £168 | £0 | £0 | £0 |
2011/2012 | £944 | £15 | £0 | £21 | £0 | £0 | £0 |
2010/2011 | £3,423 | £202 | £0 | £17 | £0 | £0 | £0 |
2009/2010 | £11,596 | £22 | £0 | £33 | £0 | £0 | £2 |
To note, there has been a supplier mandate fraud at the FCO this year amounting to £980k. This has been reported to Parliament and the National Audit Office.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much his Department has spent on (a) consultants, (b) temporary staff and (c) contingent labour in each of the last five years; how many people have been so employed; what the length of contract of each such person was; and what equivalent civil service salary band each was on.
Answered by David Lidington
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) departmental spend in these categories in the last five years is set out in the table below.
2010/2011: Consultancy: £19.2m Contingent Labour/temporary staff: £5.2m
2011/2012: Consultancy: £12.0m Contingent Labour/temporary staff: £4.3m
2012/2013: Consultancy: £3.5m Contingent Labour/temporary staff: £5.8m
2013/2014: Consultancy: £1.5m Contingent Labour/temporary staff: £6.2m
2014/2015: Consultancy: £1.2m Contingent Labour/temporary staff: £3.4m
Since March 2010, the provision of contingent labour/temporary staff in the FCO has been provided by Hays Specialist Recruitment as part of a managed service for the provision of temporary labour. Under the current government; a Cabinet Office freeze on management consultancy has led to all governmment departments driving down consultancy costs. This reflected in the steady reduction in consultancy spend from 2011 onwards; our spend on consultancy in 2013/14 was 92% lower than in 2010/2011.
It is not possible to specify over this period how many people have been employed; their contract lengths and their equivalent civil service salary band without incurring disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the Prime Minister's speech of 15 August 2011 calling for a family test to be applied to all domestic policy, which policies of his Department have been so assessed to date.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office promotes the UK’s interests overseas, supporting our citizens and businesses around the globe. As such, we do not have responsibility for creating domestic policy.
Asked by: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op) - Manchester Central)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many jobs have been transferred from the public to the private sector as a result of privatisations or outsourcing by his Department since May 2010.
Answered by Hugh Robertson
Comprehensive information on all outsourcing activities and the number of jobs involved is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.