Written question asked by Lord Campbell of Pittenweem (Liberal Democrat) on Wednesday, 23 February 2005, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 14 March 2005. It was answered by Jack Straw (Labour) on Monday, 14 March 2005 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken since 2001 to improve specialisation within his Department in the Middle East; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Sir Menzies Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department has taken since 2001 to improve specialisation within his Department in the Middle East; and if he will make a statement. [218892] Mr. Straw: [holding answer 10 March 2005]: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has long had a cadre of staff with expertise in the Middle East region, both specialist analysts and diplomatic staff with regional expertise and regional language skills. Since 2001 the FCO has maintained this cadre, and continued to develop staff with these specialisations. The figures for Arabic speaker positions in the Gulf region show a 10 per cent. increase between 1999 (40 positions) and 2004 (44 positions). As at November 2004 there were 49 trainees undergoing Arabic language training.

Secondary information