Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 20 February (HL5413), what are the 50 new diplomatic posts being created in Europe, broken down by (1) country, (2) diplomatic post, (3) grade of post holder, and (4) whether the post is currently filled or vacant.

The 50 new diplomatic positions we have created in Europe are to support the EU Exit process and to strengthen bilateral relationships with our European partners as we prepare for life outside of the EU. These positions are being deployed to our missions in Athens, Belgrade, Berlin, Berne, Bratislava, Brussels, Bucharest, Budapest, Copenhagen, Dublin, Helsinki, Istanbul, Lisbon, Ljubljana, Luxembourg, Madrid, Oslo, Paris, Prague, Riga, Rome, Skopje, Sofia, Stockholm, Tallinn, The Hague, Tirana, Valletta, Vienna, Vilnius, Warsaw and Zagreb, as well as to the UK's Permanent Representation to the EU in Brussels. Two positions are at SMS level, eight are at Band D level, and the remaining positions are at Band C level. These positions have been filled and all but two officers have now arrived at post. In addition to creating these new positions we have also upgraded 7 of our Ambassadors so that all of our Ambassadors in EU Member States are at the SMS level. We keep the size and structure of our diplomatic network under constant review to ensure it is appropriate for delivering UK objectives, and the number and grades of staff in particular locations may change over time as required.