Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 19 November 2021 to Question 75966, on Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Staff, when she plans to conclude her Department's strategic workforce plan.

Work is ongoing on the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's Strategic Workforce Plan, which will define the longer-term workforce size, skills and expertise that the department will require for the next three years. At this stage no decisions have been made.

Our focus on strategic workforce planning will ensure that we have the right capabilities to deliver on our international priorities as set out in the Integrated Review of Security, Defence, Development and Foreign Policy and the forthcoming International Development Strategy. Whilst we expect staff reductions in some locations over the course of the Spending Review, we will continue to retain one of the largest overseas diplomatic networks. Where reductions in staff are required, we would look to meet these through normal departures, the redeployment of our staff into funded posts and offering voluntary exits in line with Civil Service Policy and legal guidance.