Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to Q66 of the oral evidence given by the Chief Executive of the British Council to the Foreign Affairs Committee on 13 January 2025, HC 609, if he will make an assessment of the potential impact of the closure of British Council offices in up to 40 countries on the UK's (a) soft power and b) security in Europe.

The British Council is operationally independent from the UK Government. Decisions relating to the size and model of its overseas network are operational matters for the British Council.

The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) works with the British Council to ensure strategic alignment between FCDO objectives and British Council activity.