Written question asked by Angus Brendan MacNeil (Scottish National Party) on Wednesday, 29 February 2012, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 7 March 2012. It was answered by David Lidington (Conservative) on Thursday, 8 March 2012 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

EU Institutions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps his Department (a) has taken and (b) plans to take to promote Scotland as a location for EU agencies and decentralised bodies.

Answer: When the EU decides to create an agency, it invites bids from member states. The legislation setting up an agency is based on the relevant Treaty base. The formal decision on location is taken by the European Council. The member state which is awarded the agency decides where to locate it.The UK takes such decisions on the basis of a number of factors, including transport, infrastructure and links to the issues to be covered by the agency. This is why, for example, the European Police College was located in Bramshill, which already has the Police Staff College on site and was therefore the most suitable location.The Government have been making the case to European partners, as part of the EU inter-institutional review of agencies, that the bidding process should be more transparent, locating agencies in the most suitable city rather than in the member state which has the fewest agencies.

Secondary information