Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 December 2021 to Question 92117 on the British Council, what discussions her Department has held with the British Council on the decision to outsource the delivery of the Turing Scheme; what assessment her Department made of the potential merits of the retention of skills and experience of staff at the British Council when tendering the Turing Scheme contract; and what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the decision to outsource the Turing Scheme on British Council's future revenues and capacity.

FCDO officials meet regularly with British Council counterparts on a range of issues. Decisions relating to the future operation of the Turing scheme were carefully considered by the Department for Education as part of the tendering process and we do not expect the decision to have a major impact on the British Council's over all financial position. The retention of skills and experience of staff alongside wider commercial activities are a matter for the British Council.