Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual report 2006-07

Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual report 2006-07 PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215037305
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
This report is the Committee's annual review of how the FCO is managing its resources. This year a key area off interest has been the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review because the Committee think it is one of the tightest in Whitehall and it risks jeopardising some of the FCO's important work. Apart from this the other subjects covered are: measuring performance; operational efficiency; management and leadership; FCO services; diplomatic representation overseas; transparency and openness; public diplomacy; British council; BBC World Service.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual report 2006-07

Foreign and Commonwealth Office annual report 2006-07 PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215037305
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 300

Get Book Here

Book Description
This report is the Committee's annual review of how the FCO is managing its resources. This year a key area off interest has been the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review because the Committee think it is one of the tightest in Whitehall and it risks jeopardising some of the FCO's important work. Apart from this the other subjects covered are: measuring performance; operational efficiency; management and leadership; FCO services; diplomatic representation overseas; transparency and openness; public diplomacy; British council; BBC World Service.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report 2008-09

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report 2008-09 PDF Author: Great Britain. Parliament. House of Commons. Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215544940
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 276

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Book Description
The FCO departmental report and resource accounts 2008-09 published as HC 460-I,II (ISBN 9780102961614)

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report 2007-08

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Annual Report 2007-08 PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215526274
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
This report is the Committee's annual review of how the FCO is managing its resources, examining the departmental annual report for 2007-08 (Cm. 7398, ISBN 9780101739825). Chapters cover: new strategic framework; performance measurement; global network; essential services; FCO Services; personnel issues; transparency and openness; financial management; public diplomacy and communication; the British Council; the BBC World Service. The Committee is concerned that the FCO is facing serious financial pressures in this financial year due to the Treasury's withdrawal of its support for the Overseas Pricing Mechanism (OPM) which used to protect departments from the weakening of sterling. There is a risk that the FCO may not be able to meet higher international subscriptions over the next two financial years, causing its performance against Public Service Agreement targets to suffer. The likely increase in the UN Regular Budget and other international subscriptions will push this figure even higher. The FCO should have to shoulder the financial burden from within its already tight budget to pay for subscriptions which also benefit other Government departments. The Committee recommends that additional nondiscretionary costs should properly be met by the Treasury.

The work of the Committee in 2007

The work of the Committee in 2007 PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215513335
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 36

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Book Description
Work of the Committee In 2007 : Fourth report of session 2007-08, report, together with formal Minutes

British Diplomacy in Turkey, 1583 to the present

British Diplomacy in Turkey, 1583 to the present PDF Author: Geoffrey R. Berridge
Publisher: BRILL
ISBN: 9047429834
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 384

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Book Description
Since the early twentieth century the resident embassy has been supposed to be living on borrowed time. By means of an exhaustive historical account of the contribution of the British Embassy in Turkey to Britain’s diplomatic relationship with that state, this book shows this to be false. Part A analyses the evolution of the embassy as a working unit up to the First World War: the buildings, diplomats, dragomans, consular network, and communications. Part B examines how, without any radical changes except in its communications, it successfully met the heavy demands made on it in the following century, for example by playing a key role in a multitude of bilateral negotiations and providing cover to secret agents and drugs liaison officers.

FCO performance and finances

FCO performance and finances PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215556370
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 128

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Book Description
This report focusses on the FCO's financial situation and the implications of the Spending Review 2010 for its work and performance, and that of its associated body, the British Council. The FCO is one of the major departmental 'losers' in the Spending Review. Reductions in spending on the FCO, if they result in shortfalls in skilled personnel and technical support in key countries and regions, can have a serious effect in terms of the UK's relations with foreign countries, out of all proportion to the amounts of money involved, especially in relation to the UK's security and that of its Overseas Territories. Cuts to the core FCO budget of even 10% may have a damaging effect on the Department's ability to promote UK interests overseas. The FCO will also face cuts of 55% to its capital budget. The target of raising £50 million per year through selling existing buildings may be difficult to achieve, and may not secure savings in the long-term. A further reduction in the opportunities for more junior UK-based staff to serve in overseas posts, and a consequent diminishing of experience and morale among FCO employees, could over time have a damaging effect on the quality of British diplomacy and the effectiveness of the FCO. The British Council, facing a 25% cut in spending, should give detailed information on its strategy for implementing the cut, which may well trigger fundamental rethinking of the role and work of the Council.

British Foreign and Defence Policy Since 1945

British Foreign and Defence Policy Since 1945 PDF Author: Robert Self
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0230313531
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 288

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Book Description
Foreign policy has dominated successive governments' time in office and cast a consistently long shadow over British politics in the period since 1945. Robert Self provides a readable and incisive assessment of the key issues and events from the retreat from empire through the cold war period to Humanitarian Intervention and the debacle in Iraq.

The role of the FCO in UK government

The role of the FCO in UK government PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215559470
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 234

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Book Description
The Foreign Affairs Committee believes the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) will not be back at the centre of Government and able to lead UK foreign policy, in line with the Foreign Secretary's ambitions, unless it can provide deep foreign policy expertise and judgement to underpin and implement Government decision-making. The FCO must have the resources and skills required to fulfil this role, especially specialist geographical expertise and knowledge of foreign languages. The FCO has a vital role to play for the Government, namely the timely provision of world-class foreign policy information, analysis, judgement and execution. Finances, people and buildings must be well-managed, but managerial requirements must not divert time and focus disproportionately from the FCO's core foreign policy functions. Given the resource constraints facing the FCO, however, there is doubt whether the department can achieve the Government's ambitions for enhanced commercial work while maintaining its core foreign policy functions at the required standard. The committee regards the FCO's network of overseas posts as integral to the department's ability to discharge its functions, and recommends that the FCO should seek to maintain a global UK presence. The committee also called "confusing" the fact that under the current Government the FCO has three sets of priorities: the Foreign Secretary's, the Cabinet Office's Business Plan for the department, and the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review.

Global security

Global security PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215035844
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
This report is the first in a new series o global security matters. It focuses on the Government's policy to Israel, its Arab neighbours, Iraq and the increasing influence of Iran in the region. It also considers the role of other regional actors and the Government's broad approach the Middle East as a whole. There are a number of specific recommendations for each of the countries in the region, such as the need to start talking to Hamas. More generally it recommends that the Government should pay closer attention to the impact of its foreign policy in the Middle East and that it should publish a strategy paper with measurable targets for progress.

FCO Performance and Finances 2011-12

FCO Performance and Finances 2011-12 PDF Author: Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Foreign Affairs Committee
Publisher: The Stationery Office
ISBN: 9780215056849
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 114

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Book Description
The Foreign Affairs Committee publishes a wide-ranging report on the work of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and two of its sponsored bodies, the BBC World Service and the British Council. It makes key recommendations on language skills for top diplomats, BBC World service funding and priorities, and funding for the British Council. For the FCO, the exclusion of foreign language skills and reliance purely on general management competencies creates the risk of credibility in respect of key diplomatic postings. The Committee finds it unacceptable that the World Service will not know its budget, priorities or objectives before the transition to licence fee funding and the new arrangements for oversight by the BBC Trust from April 2014. The British Council will struggle to deliver the UK's foreign policy objectives if cuts to grant funding from the FCO continue at a similar rate. The Committee recommends that the FCO should shield the British Council from the effect of any further cuts to the FCO budget in 2015-16.