House of Commons - Foreign Affairs

Select Committee on Foreign Affairs Minutes of Evidence

CONSULAR MATTERS

Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from the Director, Consular Directorate, Foreign and Commonwealth Office 14 October 2004

DELIVERING HIGH QUALITY CONSULAR SERVICES: FCO'S CONSULAR STRATEGY 2004-2007

As you will know, in July 2004 the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) published its first-ever strategy entitled "In Partnership: Delivering High-Quality Consular Services". This was the product of a consultative process that built on the expertise of, amongst others, Parliamentarians, the private sector, professional associations, NGOs, minority groups and other government departments. We were grateful that both you and Geoffrey Farrar were able to participate in the London workshop held on 2 December last year. We have now sent copies of the strategy to all Members of Parliament and selected Peers. We have also lodged copies of the strategy in the libraries of both Houses.

I am conscious that Members of the Committee retain a keen interest in the issue of consular services. I note, for example, that in its response to this year's FCO Departmental Report, the Committee expressed its concern that the FCO's new strategic priorities should not affect our delivery of public services. The consular strategy is intended to ensure that we continue to deliver consular services efficiently and to the highest possible standard. But, of course, producing a strategy marks the beginning rather than the end of this process; our main task now is to ensure its quick and effective implementation.

I thought, therefore, that Members of the Committee might wish to be informed of the creation of a new Consular Strategy Board which will hold its first meeting on 28 October. The board will meet twice a year with the aim of ensuring the effectiveness and impact of the consular strategy. I will chair the board and have invited representatives to join from a wide range of external stakeholders and partners with an interest in consular issues. The dialogue with these representatives will not only give us good ideas on how best to tackle exiting and emerging challenges in consular work but will also allow us to develop specific areas of co-operation and complementary working with stakeholders and partners. We plan to publish action points arising from the Consular Strategy Board on the FCO website.

On the same day, we will also be holding the first meeting of the Travel Advice Review Group. This group will be an advisory council on travel advice and will bring together representatives of the travel and insurance industries, NGOs and others to advise on issues arising from travel advice and its implementation. The establishment of such a body was one of the key recommendations of the review of Foreign Office travel advice which the Foreign Secretary commissioned in December 2003.

Separately, you may have seen that the consular strategy highlights the need for the FCO's Consular Directorate to increase its outreach to its partners and clients. This will enable us to understand their priorities and explain to them the need for consistent and standard limits to consular assistance. One of the key audiences we have identified are Members of Parliament and we are hoping to arrange a series of targeted briefings over the coming months explaining the challenges we face and how we intend to implement the strategy. Needless to say, if Members of the Committee feel that they would benefit from such a briefing, I would be delighted to arrange one for them.

Thank you once again for your contribution towards the consular strategy. It is a vital document that will shape our work for years to come. I look forward to continuing to work closely with you throughout this time.

Paul Sizeland

Director, Consular Directorate

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

14 October 2004

Letter to the Clerk of the Committee from the Director, Consular Directorate, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, 12 November 2004

UPDATING OF CONSULAR DIRECTORATE'S LIST OF NOTIFIABLE SERIOUS ARRESTABLE OFFENCES

The FCO has long recognised its duty to be helpful to law enforcement agencies in dealing with serious criminals and to improve international co-operation against crime. The FCO also has a duty of consular confidentiality, as we must not be seen to be prejudicing the interests of the British public that we serve. Our present policy agreed in October 2001 is to pro-actively inform law agencies of the details of arrested British nationals if the crime they have been accused of is listed as a Serious Arrestable Offence (SAO). If a British national is arrested on any other basis, then we do not notify National Criminal Intelligence Service unless that person is charged with an SAO. We believe this policy appropriately balances the two obligations. However, the SAO list requires regular updating to reflect the latest legislation, in particular the Sexual Offences Act, which came into force in May this year. We try to ensure that consular staff working overseas have the best reference tools and information available to them and to ensure a consistent, world-wide approach. We have therefore updated the list of SAOs derived from the Police and Criminal Evidence Act in as simple a form as possible for use by our consular staff abroad.

We only consider requests from law enforcement agencies for personal information if they are made in writing and specify that a named individual is being investigated in connection with a crime, on suspicion of a criminal offence or a specific crime or arrest. If the request came from a foreign law enforcement agency a risk assessment would have to take place, as we need to take into consideration our obligations under Human Rights legislation.

I thought that you might like to share the enclosed list with members of the Foreign Affairs Committee, but also reassure them that we endeavour to keep the list as up to date as possible to reflect changing legislation.

Paul Sizeland

Director

Consular Directorate

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

12 November 2004

Annex 1

SERIOUS ARRESTABLE OFFENCES (as defined in the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 as amended)

GENERAL

— Treason.

— Murder.

— Manslaughter.

— Kidnapping and Hostage taking.