Session 2010-12
Estimates Memoranda
DR 27
Foreign & Commonwealth Office Main Estimate 2011-12 Memorandum for the Foreign Affairs Committee
Introduction
1. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Estimate has the following sections:
· Section A: Expenditure by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), including UK Trade and Investment, on its administration, FCO Services, Wilton Park Executive Agency, hospitality and facilities; scholarships, information services and sponsored visits; special payments and assistance programmes to support foreign policy objectives including human rights, good governance, international security and the fight against the illicit drug trade; and on associated non-cash items;
· Section B: Grants to international organisations and other bodies supporting FCO objectives
· Sections C and D: Resource grant to the BBC World Service for broadcasting and to the British Council, respectively;
· Sections E and F: Capital grant to the BBC World Service for broadcasting and to the British Council, respectively;
· Section G: The net expenditure of FCO sponsored Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) in particular the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission and the Great Britain China Centre;
· Section H: Grant expenditure by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office on conflict prevention, early warning, crisis management, conflict resolution/peacemaking;
· Section I: Grant expenditure on peacekeeping and peace building activity and on associated strengthening of international and regional systems;
· Section J: Departmental Unallocated Provision;
· Section K: AME non-cash expenditure on impairments and provisions;
· Section L: AME grants to refund certain taxes and duties paid by certain Foreign and Commonwealth governments.
Main Estimates Changes
Machinery of Government transfer of passport receipts.
2. There is a budget neutral Machinery of Government change relating the estimated £40,000,000 income that will be derived from the sale of passports issued overseas. This income will now accrue to the Immigration and Passport Service (IPS). However there will be no transfer of staff as the FCO will continue in the medium term to provide passport issuing services and charge the IPS accordingly. Overtime all passports will be issued from the UK reducing their cost.
Reserve Claim
3. There is a claim on the Reserve of £374,000,000 programme expenditure (Section I) in respect of take up of the non-discretionary Peacekeeping funds. This represents the entire balance of the fund for 2011–12 as we expect all expenditure to be committed before the Spring Supplementary.
Budget cover transfers
4. There are two major programme transfers from Department for International Development (DFID), £103,827,000 (section H) and £45,000,000 (Section I) which will fund all discretionary conflict prevention, stabilisation and peacekeeping activity. It will be managed through six Conflict Pool programmes: Afghanistan, South Asia, Middle East, Africa, Wider Europe and Strengthening Alliances and Partnerships (formerly the Strategic Support to International Organisations programme). The programmes continue to be managed tri-departmentally. Details of Conflict Pool allocations for 2011–12 were announced to Parliament in a joint Written Ministerial Statement by the Secretaries of State for International Development, Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs and Defence on 5th April 2011.
5. Expenditure is added to by other pool partners through transfers between Departments in Main and Supplementary Estimates.
6. Other transfers are:
· £2,375,000 programme from Department of Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) in respect of the Science and Innovation Network (to Section A) representing their 50% contribution to the cost of running the network.
· £118,000 Administration to the Cabinet Office in respect of staff costs associated with reorganisation of their European and Global Issues Secretariat (EGIS) (from Section A).
· £100,000 Programme from DFID in respect of bilateral aid in the Democratic Republic of Congo (to Section A).
· £2,000 Admin to the Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) in respect of the FCO’s contribution to running the secretariat of the cross-departmental public sector mapping agreement (from Section A).
7. No FCO activities are expected to be reduced as a result of the above transfers. Transfers between government departments such as these are a routine occurrence and are therefore incorporated in the normal budgeting process.
Reconciliation of 2011–12 Main Estimates to SR2010 Outcome
8. The Spending Review 2010 settlement showed the FCO Resource Budget for 2011–12 as £1,616,000,000 and the capital budget as £107,000,000. Subsequently there have been a small number of changes to the FCO's Departmental Expenditure Limits (DELs) which bring the current Resource DEL figure for 2011–12 to £2,141,182,000 and the Capital DEL to £107,000,000. The tables below show the main changes and reconcile the 2010 Spending Review budget allocations with the Main Estimates figures.
|
Table 1 Resource |
2011–12 |
|
Resource DEL Baseline from SR 2010 (£m) |
1,616.000 |
|
Changes to Resource DEL |
|
Changes effected in Main Estimates 2011–12 |
|
|
Peacekeeping Reserve Claim |
374.000 |
|
Conflict Pool transfer from DFID |
103.827 |
|
Peacekeeping transfer from DFID |
45.000 |
|
Transfer from BIS for Science and Innovation Network |
2.375 |
|
EGIS transfer to Cabinet Office |
-0.118 |
|
Democratic Republic of Congo transfer from DFID |
0.100 |
|
Public sector mapping transfer to DCLG |
-0.002 |
|
Resource DEL at 1 April 2011 |
2,141.182 |
|
AME (impairments and provisions) |
75.000 |
|
2011–12 Main Estimate Resource Total (DEL+AME) The FCO has no non-budget spending |
2,216.182 |
|
Table 2 Capital |
2011-12 |
|
Capital DEL Baseline from SR 2010 (£m) |
107.000 |
|
2011–12 Main Estimate Capital Net Total |
107.000 |
|
Table 3 Administration |
2011–12 |
|
Administration Baseline from SR 2010 (£m) |
248.000 |
|
Changes to Administration |
|
Changes effected in Main Estimates 2011–12 |
|
|
EGIS transfer to Cabinet Office |
-0.118 |
|
Public sector mapping transfer to DCLG |
-0.002 |
|
Main Estimate Administration |
247.880 |
Programmes
9. Details of FCO spend by programme in 2011–12 were announced to Parliament in a Written Ministerial Statement by the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs on 1 February 2011, following his review. We will, in future Estimates memoranda, provide explanations of variances of more that 10% against the figures published in the Written Ministerial Statement. All the FCO’s own direct programme spending scores against Section A of the Supply Estimate with Section B covering the corresponding grants to third parties.
Budget comparisons
10. Table 4 shows outturn on the definition of departmental budgets used in the year concerned in order to be consistent with published data.
|
Table 4 Previous years' expenditure against departmental budgets £m |
||||||
|
Year |
Voted |
Non-voted |
Total DEL |
Outturn 1 |
Variance Per cent |
|
|
Resource DEL |
||||||
|
2008–09 Outturn |
2,074.701 |
3.000 |
2,077.701 |
2,085.310 |
0.4 |
|
|
2009–10 Outturn |
2,237.987 |
3,000 |
2,240.987 |
2,224.375 |
-0.7 |
|
2010–11 Forecast |
2,221,450 |
14,000 |
2,235,450 |
2,225.375 |
-0.4 |
|
2011–12 Plans |
2,141.182 |
2,141.182 |
||||
2012–13 Plans |
1,573.373 |
1,573.373 |
||||
2013–14 Plans |
1,547.373 |
1,547.373 |
||||
2014–15 Plans |
1,291.373 |
1,291.373 |
||||
Of which Administration |
||||||
|
2008–09 Outturn |
430.517 |
430.517 |
412.805 |
-4.1 |
||
|
2009–10 Outturn |
456.289 |
456.289 |
445.158 |
-2.4 |
||
2010–11 Forecast |
489.127 |
1.630 |
490.757 |
470.757 |
-4.1 |
|
2011–12 Plans |
247.880 |
247.880 |
||||
2012–13 Plans |
229.998 |
229.998 |
||||
2013–14 Plans |
214.998 |
214.998 |
||||
2014–15 Plans |
201.998 |
201.998 |
||||
Resource AME |
||||||
|
2008–09 Outturn |
50.000 |
50.000 |
-30.031 |
-160.1 |
||
|
2009–10 Outturn |
50.000 |
50.000 |
51.144 |
2.3 |
||
2010–11 Forecast |
40.000 |
40.000 |
40.000 |
0.0 |
||
2011–12 Plans |
75.000 |
75.000 |
||||
2012–13 Plans |
75.000 |
75.000 |
||||
2013–14 Plans |
75.000 |
75.000 |
||||
2014–15 Plans |
75.000 |
75.000 |
||||
|
Capital DEL |
||||||
|
2008–09 Outturn |
216.060 |
216.060 |
229.080 |
6.0 |
||
|
2009–10 Outturn |
203.310 |
203.310 |
199.638 |
-1.8 |
||
2010–11 Forecast |
167.854 |
167.854 |
153.254 |
-8.7 |
||
2011–12 Plans |
107.000 |
107.000 |
||||
2012–13 Plans |
102.000 |
102.000 |
||||
2013–14 Plans |
102.000 |
102.000 |
||||
2014–15 Plans |
98.000 |
98.000 |
||||
Departmental Unallocated Provision (DUP) 2011–12
11. At the time of the Main Estimate, the FCO has £10,000,000 of unallocated resource.
|
Table 5 2011–12 Departmental Unallocated Provision |
Resource |
Capital |
|
|
DUP to met unforeseen requirements arising in-year |
£10.0m |
£0.0m |
|
|
Total |
£10.0m |
£0.0m |
|
Changes in Accounting Policies
12. In accordance with the Clear Line of Sight alignment project the FCO will consolidate the Westminster Foundation for Democracy, the Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission and the Great Britain China Centre Non-Departmental Public Bodies into its 2011–12 Accounts.
15 April 2011