| Foreign and Commonwealth Office | |
|---|---|
| FCO Logo | |
| Agency overview | |
| Formed | 1968 |
| Preceding agencies | Commonwealth Office Foreign Office |
| Jurisdiction | United Kingdom |
| Headquarters | FCO Main Building, King Charles Street, London |
| Annual budget | £1.5 billion (current) & £100 million (capital) in 2011-12 [1] |
| Minister responsible | The Rt Hon. William Hague MP, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs |
| Agency executive | Simon Fraser CMG, Permanent Under-Secretary |
| Website | |
| http://www.fco.gov.uk | |
| United Kingdom | |
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The Foreign and Commonwealth Office, commonly called the Foreign Office or the FCO is a British government department responsible for promoting the interests of the United Kingdom overseas, created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth Office.
The head of the FCO is the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly abbreviated to "Foreign Secretary" (currently William Hague). This position is regarded as one of the three most prestigious appointments in the Cabinet, alongside those of Chancellor of the Exchequer and Home Secretary. Together with the Prime Minister, these comprise the Great Offices of State.
The Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Head of the Diplomatic Service since the end of August 2010 is Simon Fraser CMG.
Contents |
The FCO Ministers are as follows: [2]
| Minister | Rank | Portfolio | |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Rt Hon William Hague MP | Secretary of State | Overall responsibility | |
| The Rt Hon David Lidington MP | Minister of State Minister for Europe |
Europe and NATO | |
| The Rt Hon Lord Howell of Guildford | Minister of State | Commonwealth affairs and international energy | |
| Jeremy Browne MP | Minister of State | South East Asia & Far East, Caribbean, Central & South America, Australasia & Pacific, human rights, consular, migration, drugs and international crime, public diplomacy and the Olympics | |
| The Rt Hon Lord Green of Hurstpierpoint | Minister of State Minister of State for Trade and Investment |
Cross-government strategy for trade and inward investment | |
| Henry Bellingham MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State | Africa, United Nations, economic issues, conflict resolution and climate change | |
| Alistair Burt MP | Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State | Afghanistan & South Asia, counter terrorism & proliferation, North America, Middle East & North Africa | |
| Key | Conservative | |
|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrat |
William Hague is also First Secretary of State, which implies seniority over all other Secretaries of State.
Lord Green also works at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills [3] and is lead minister on the Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD).
The Foreign Office was formed in March 1782 by combining the Southern and Northern Departments of the Secretary of State, each of which covered both foreign and domestic affairs in their parts of the Kingdom. The two departments' foreign affairs responsibilities became the Foreign Office, whilst their domestic affairs responsibilities were assigned to the Home Office. The Home Office is technically the more senior.[4]
During the 19th century, it was not infrequent for the Foreign Office to approach The Times newspaper and ask for continental intelligence, which was often superior to that conveyed by official sources.[5]
During World War I the Arab Bureau was set up within the British Foreign Office. It was a section of the Cairo Intelligence Department.
The FCO was formed in 1968, from the merger of the short-lived Commonwealth Office and the Foreign Office. The Commonwealth Office had been created only in 1966, by the merger of the Commonwealth Relations Office and the Colonial Office, and the Commonwealth Relations Office had been formed by the merger of the Dominions Office and the India Office in 1947—with the Dominions Office having been split from the Colonial Office in 1925.
When David Miliband took over as Foreign Secretary in June 2007, he set in hand a review of the FCO’s strategic priorities. One of the key messages of these discussions was the conclusion that the existing framework of ten international strategic priorities, dating from 2003, was no longer appropriate. Although the framework had been useful in helping the FCO plan its work and allocate its resources, there was agreement that it needed a new framework to drive its work forward.
The new strategic framework consists of three core elements:
In August 2005, a report by management consultant group Collinson Grant was made public by Andrew Mackinlay. The report severely criticised the FCO's management structure, noting:
The Foreign Office commissioned the report to highlight areas which would help it achieve its pledge to reduce spending by £87 million pounds over three years. In response to the report being made public, the Foreign Office stated it had already implemented the report's recommendations. [1]
In April 2006 a new executive agency was established, FCO Services, to provide corporate service functions. In April 2008 it moved to Trading Fund status so it had the ability to provide similar services which it already offers to the FCO, to other government departments and even outside businesses.
On 25 April 2010, the department apologised after The Sunday Telegraph obtained a "foolish" document calling for the upcoming September visit of Pope Benedict XVI to be marked by the launch of "Benedict-branded" condoms, the opening of an abortion clinic and the blessing of a same-sex marriage.[6]
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office occupies a building which originally provided premises for four separate government departments: the Foreign Office, the India Office, the Colonial Office, and the Home Office. Construction on the building began in 1861 and finished in 1868, and it was designed by the architect George Gilbert Scott.[7] Its architecture is in the Italianate style; Scott had initially envisaged a Gothic design, but Lord Palmerston, then Prime Minister, insisted on a classical style.[7] English sculptors Henry Hugh Armstead and John Birnie Philip produced a number of allegorical figures ('Art', 'Law', 'Commerce', etc.) for the exterior.
In 1925, the Foreign Office played host to the signing of the Locarno Treaties, aimed at reducing tension in Europe. The ceremony took place in a suite of rooms that had been designed for banqueting, which subsequently became known as the Locarno Suite.[8] During the Second World War, the Locarno Suite's fine furnishings were removed or covered up, and it became home to a foreign office code-breaking department.[8]
Due to increasing numbers of staff, the offices became increasingly cramped and much of the fine Victorian interior was covered over—especially after World War II. In the 1960s, demolition was proposed, as part of major redevelopment plan for the area drawn up by architect Sir Leslie Martin.[7] A subsequent public outcry prevented these proposals from ever being implemented. Instead, the Foreign Office became a Grade 1 listed building in 1970.[7] In 1978, the Home office moved to a new building, easing overcrowding.
With a new sense of the building's historical value, it underwent a 17-year, £100 million restoration process, completed in 1997.[7] The Locarno Suite, used as offices and storage since the Second World War, was fully restored for use in international conferences. The building is now open to the public each year over Open House Weekend. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is now also the main tenant of the Old Admiralty Building, at the opposite end of Horse Guards Parade.
International relations are, by necessity, handled centrally from Westminster on behalf of the whole of Britain. However, the devolved administrations also maintain an overseas presence in the European Union and the USA alongside British diplomatic missions:
European Union
USA
These offices aim to promote their regional economies and ensure that devolved interests are taken into account in British foreign policy. Devolved ministers can attend international negotiations when permitted by the British Government e.g. EU fisheries negotiations.[9]
UK and devolved ministers meet at approximately quarterly intervals through the Joint Ministerial Committee (Europe), chaired by the Foreign Secretary to "discuss matters bearing on devolved responsibilities that are under discussion within the European Union."