Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what additional training on the UK's development priorities Ambasadors will receive prior to the merger of his Department and the Department for International Development in September 2020.

As the Prime Minister has said, merging the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Department for International Development (DFID) will bring together the best of what we do in development and diplomacy. As the world becomes ever more complex, we need single cross-government strategies, implemented on the ground by the Ambassador or High Commissioner heading all of HMG's work in-country. To facilitate this, the FCO is already working closely alongside DFID colleagues on our overall leadership offer on both development and diplomacy. One of the key objectives of the compulsory Overseas Leadership Programme undertaken by all Heads and Deputy Heads of Missions is preparing to represent the whole of HMG at Post. This includes sessions with DFID leaders to discuss development priorities and working together effectively as partners across Government. Many of our Heads and Deputy Heads of Mission have had experience of development issues prior to taking up their appointments. The full details of the merger will be set out in due course.