Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Hemsworth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the transparency document entitled Foreign and Commonwealth Office Gender Pay Gap Report, if he will set out the pay gap data for median, mean and bonus pay by (a) grade and (b) profession.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The pay gap data for the FCO for median, mean and bonus pay by grade is:
Grade | CS Grade | Mean ordinary pay | Median ordinary pay |
A1 | AA | 0.9% | 0.0% |
A2 | AO | 1.7% | 1.3% |
B3 | EO | 0.2% | -1.7% |
C4 | HEO | 2.4% | 0.9% |
C5 | SEO | 6.9% | 3.6% |
D6 | G7 | 2.4% | 0.0% |
D7 | G6 | 3.2% | 0.4% |
SMS1 | SCS1 | 2.6% | -0.3% |
SMS2 | SCS2 | 0.8% | 2.0% |
SMS3 | SCS2 | 1.4% | 2.3% |
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Grade | CS Grade | Mean bonus pay | Median bonus pay |
A1 | AA | -73.2% | -79.9% |
A2 | AO | 11.5% | 63.4% |
B3 | EO | -3.4% | -0.9% |
C4 | HEO | 2.8% | -0.8% |
C5 | SEO | 9.8% | 8.3% |
D6 | G7 | 12.0% | 8.5% |
D7 | G6 | 4.6% | 0.0% |
SMS1 | SCS1 | 24.9% | 70.5% |
SMS2 | SCS2 | -11.3% | 0.0% |
SMS3 | SCS2 | -8.9% | -8.9% |
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These figures include FCO(Services) and Wilton Park.
The FCO does not hold data on professions so I am unable to answer (b).
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of his Department's staff employed in overseas roles were based in the Russian and Eastern Europe region in each year since 2010; and how many such staff were in roles requiring the ability to speak a local language.
Answered by Boris Johnson
The following numbers of UK-based staff were employed in overseas roles in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia region (including Russia) in each Financial Year since 2012/13. As reported in the 2012/13 FCO Annual Report and Accounts on page 29 in February 2013, the FCO realigned previous staffing figures to better reflect guidance issued by the Office of National Statistics, for example it excluded all staff working for the UK Border Agency (UKBA) overseas, and staff working for Wilton Park and FCO Services. This means that we are unable to provide reliable comparable figures prior to this date.
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2012/13 | 89 |
2013/14 | 74 |
2014/15 | 74 |
2015/16 | 76 |
2016/17 | 77 |
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The number of designated language speaker slots in this region was as follows.
2014/15 50
2015/16 57
2016/17 61
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many members of staff his Department employs overseas in roles based in the Middle East and North Africa region in each year since 2010; and how many such staff were in roles requiring an ability to speak a local language.
Answered by Boris Johnson
The following numbers of UK-based staff were employed in overseas roles in the Middle East and North Africa region in each Financial Year since 2012/13. As reported in the 2012/13 FCO Annual Report and Accounts at page 29 in February 2013, the FCO realigned previous staffing figures to better reflect guidance issued by the Office of National Statistics, for example it excluded all staff working for the UK Border Agency (UKBA) overseas, and staff working for Wilton Park and FCO Services. This means that we are unable to provide reliable comparable figures prior to this date.
UK based staff positions in Middle East and North African posts:
2012/13 219
2103/14 197
2014/15 181
2015/16 219
28 Feb 2017 239
The numbers of speaker positions is as follows:
March 2015 78
March 2016 95
March 2017 93
Asked by: Jon Trickett (Labour - Hemsworth)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what the level of earnings is of the (a) highest and (b) lowest-paid employee of his Department, its agencies and arms-length bodies; and what the median level of earnings is for such employees.
Answered by Alan Duncan
The table below shows the highest, lowest and median salaries of staff in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, its agencies and arms length bodies.
| Organisation | Highest salary | Lowest salary | Median salary |
| Foreign and Commonwealth Office | £180,000-£184,999 | £18,779 | £33,108 |
| British Council | £190,000-£194,999 | £15,302 | £33,104 |
| FCO Services | £120,000-£124,999 | £18,887 | £29,153 |
| Great Britain China Centre | £85,000-£89,999 | £18,000 | £28,355 |
| Westminster Foundation for Democracy | £95,000-£99,999 | £20,000 | £33,762 |
| Wilton Park | £115,000-£119,999 | £18,779 | £22,530 |
Asked by: Lord Hylton (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they are making for the introduction of safe and legal routes for refugees and migrants, or for secure holding areas in North Africa, to prevent further deaths by drowning in the Mediterranean; and what assessment they have made of plans other governments are making.
Answered by Baroness Williams of Trafford - Captain of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen-at-Arms (HM Household) (Chief Whip, House of Lords)
We operate several resettlement schemes, working closely with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to provide safe and legal routes to the UK for refugees: Gateway, Mandate, the Syrian Vulnerable Persons Resettlement scheme and the Vulnerable Children's Resettlement scheme.
We are under no obligation to consider asylum claims lodged outside UK territory and it is not appropriate to do so. Those who need international protection should claim asylum in the first safe country they reach - that is the fastest route to safety.
Those granted refugee status or humanitarian protection in the UK are able to sponsor their pre-flight family members to join them under the family reunion policy. This includes those granted humanitarian protection in the UK under one of our resettlement schemes.
The UK has played an important role in framing the global response to the challenges of large-scale movements of refugees and migrants. The UK co-hosted the London-Syria Conference, the Wilton Park Protracted Displacement Forum and helped to deliver the World Humanitarian Summit.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how much in support of which projects the counter-proliferation programme spent in each of the last six financial years.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
We publish a strategy for the FCO Counter Proliferation Programme each year. The strategy for 2016/17 is available at:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/counter-proliferation-programme
The largest programme contribution in the last six financial years was £506,432 in 2015/16 to support the IAEA’s additional verification work in support of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action on Iran. The programme also made a contribution in 2013/14 amounting to £400,000. In previous years contributions have been made to international organisations, including the International Atomic Energy Agency, Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisation, Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention, Arms Trade Treaty and export control regimes.
Partners have also included Chatham House, Kings College London, Saferworld, Small Arms Survey and Wilton Park.
Asked by: Philip Davies (Conservative - Shipley)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many staff in his Department and non-departmental public bodies receive (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance.
Answered by Tobias Ellwood
There are no staff employed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) who are in receipt of (a) home to work travel allowance, (b) a car allowance and (c) subsidised health insurance. This is also the case for FCO Services, the British Council, Wilton Park Executive Agency, the Westminster Foundation for Democracy and the Great Britain China Centre.
To obtain information for local staff employed directly by our overseas embassies and missions would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Diana Johnson (Labour - Kingston upon Hull North)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many press and public relations staff are employed by (a) UK Trade and Investment, (b) FCO Services, (c) Wilton Park, (d) the British Council, (e) the Great Britain-China Centre, (f) the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission and (g) the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, (h) Government Communications Headquarters and (i) the Secret Intelligence Service; how many of those employees earn more than (i) £50,000 and (ii) £100,000; and what the total expenditure was on press and public relations by each of those organisations in the most recent year for which figures are available.
Answered by David Lidington
The number of press and public relations staff employed in each organisation is
as follows:
FCO Services: 0.5 full-time equivalent
Wilton Park: 0
The British Council: 7
The Great Britain-China Centre: 0
The Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission: 0
The Westminster Foundation for
Democracy: 0
i) The number of press and public relations employees who
earn more than £50,000 in each organisation is as follows:
FCO Services: 0
Wilton Park: 0
The British Council: 1
The Great Britain-China
Centre: 0
The Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission: 0
The Westminster
Foundation for Democracy: 0
ii) No press and public relations employee
earns more than £100,000 in any of the organisationslisted above.
iii)
The total expenditure on press and public relations by each organisation in
2014/15, excluding staff costs, is as follows:
FCO Services: £21,312
Wilton Park: Nil
The British Council: £126,041
The Great
Britain-China Centre: Nil
The Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission: Nil
The Westminster Foundation for Democracy: Nil
It is long standing government policy not to publish Government Communication Headquarters (GCHQ) and Secret Intelligence Service (SIS) expenditure or staff figures to the requested level of detail. However, other data on the intelligence agencies' expenditure and staff numbers are normally published in the annual reports of the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament.
Across Government the government communications profession saved £330 million for taxpayers last year compared to 2009 to 2010 - by making its campaigns more cost effective. This means the government reduced communications spending by a total of £1 billion during the last Parliament.
Asked by: Stephen Hammond (Conservative - Wimbledon)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to prepare for the implementation of the proposed General Data Protection Regulation; which non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs) and agencies overseen by his Department will be affected by that regulation; and what estimate he has made of the potential liability of his Department, its agencies and NDPBs in connection with that proposed regulation.
Answered by David Lidington
Negotiations on the proposed General Data Protection Regulation are ongoing. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is closely involved in work led by the Department for Culture, Media & Sport to consider the implications of the text and to ensure that UK interests are reflected. Once the outcome of trilogue negotiations between the Council of the European Union, the European Parliament and the Commission are complete, and the Regulation has been adopted, the liabilities will be further assessed. There will then follow a maximum implementation period of two years. We will also be considering the impact on our Executive Agencies (FCO Services and Wilton Park) and our Executive Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) (the British Council, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission, the Great Britain China Centre and the Westminster Foundation for Democracy), all of which will affected by the Regulation.
Asked by: Baroness Armstrong of Hill Top (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will list those persons appointed as chairs of non-departmental public bodies by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.
Answered by Baroness Anelay of St Johns
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) is responsible for the appointment of chairs to the following public bodies regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments:
Great Britain China Centre: Martin Davidson
Marshall Aid Commemorative Commission: John Hughes
Westminster Foundation for Democracy: Henry Bellingham (political nominee)
Imperial War Museum: Sir Francis Richards
Appointments to the chairs of the following non-regulated bodies also fall under FCO’s remit:
British Council : Sir Vernon Ellis
Wilton Park: Iain Ferguson