Departmental Manpower
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs
Frank Dobson (Holborn and St Pancras, Labour)
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many jobs in (a) his Department and (b) the agencies and non-departmental bodies for which he is responsible were transferred to the private sector in 2010-11.
Henry Bellingham (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Africa and the United Nations), Foreign and Commonwealth Office; North West Norfolk, Conservative)
Neither the Foreign and Commonwealth Office nor its non-departmental bodies transferred UK based jobs to the private sector during financial year 2010-11. However, during this period a number of locally engaged jobs were outsourced. These transfers occurred as part of a major efficiency programme which sought the most cost-effective method of providing support services at our overseas Posts. As Posts have delegated authority to make these management decisions, full details of staff changes are not held centrally and are available only at disproportionate cost.