Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Brett (Labour). It was answered on Monday, 22 November 2010.

Fulbright Scholarship Programme: Funding

Question: My Lords, the Minister is in danger of giving mixed messages: strong support for Fulbright scholarships but no commitment to funding. Now we have heard about the Chevening scholarships. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office business plan calls for a strategy to enhance the impact of the UK’s contribution on conflict prevention by way of scholarship provision, yet a Written Ministerial Statement on 10 July said that there would be a £10 million reduction in its funding. Can the Minister state what that funding represents; when it will be put in place; and what programmes are to be curtailed?

Answer: I am afraid I will not be able to help the noble Lord on this occasion. I have made it clear that I am answering specifically on the Fulbright scholarships. We believe that there is value in all the scholarships that we have throughout government, and we will offer them support where we can. However, the noble Lord must recognise that difficult decisions have to be made about spending because of what we inherited from the previous Government.

Secondary information