Coordinates: 51°30′09.7″N 0°07′39.

7″W

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office(FCO), commonly called the Foreign Office, is a department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is
Foreign and
responsible for protecting and promoting British interests worldwide. It was created in 1968 by merging the Foreign Office and the Commonwealth
Commonwealth Office
Office.

The head of the FCO is the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, commonly abbreviated to "Foreign Secretary" (currently Boris
Johnson, who took office on 13 July 2016). This is regarded as one of the four most prestigious positions in the Cabinet – the Great Offices of State –
alongside those of Prime Minister, Chancellor of the Exchequerand Home Secretary.

The FCO is managed from day to day by a civil servant, the Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, who also acts as the Head of Her
Majesty's Diplomatic Service. This position is held bySir Simon McDonald, who took office on 1 September 2015.

Contents
Responsibilities
Ministers
History of the department
The Foreign Office Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office Main Building, London, seen from
Developments Whitehall
Overseas Territories Directorate Department overview
FCO Services
Formed 1968
Buildings
Foreign and Commonwealth Office Main Building Preceding Commonwealth
agencies Office
Devolution
See also Foreign Office

References Jurisdiction United Kingdom

External links Headquarters King Charles Street
London, SW1
51°30′09″N
Responsibilities 0°07′39.7″W
Annual £1.1bn (current) &
Safeguarding the UK’s national security by countering terrorism and weapons proliferation, and working to reduce conflict.
budget £0.1bn (capital) in
Building the UK’s prosperity by increasing exports and investment, opening markets, ensuring access to resources, and promoting
sustainable global growth. 2015-16[1]
Supporting British nationals around the world through modern and ef ficient consular services. Minister Boris Johnson,
responsible Secretary of State
Ministers for Foreign and
Commonwealth
The FCO Ministers are as follows:[2][3]
Affairs
Minister Rank Portfolio Department Sir Simon
The Rt executive McDonald KCMG
Hon. Boris Secretary of KCVO, Permanent
Overall responsibility for the department; Policy Unit; honours; intelligence policy
Johnson State
MP Under-Secretary

The Rt Child FCO Services

Minister of
Hon. Sir The Americas (including Cuba); Europe; NATO and European security; defence and international agencies
State for Wilton Park
Alan security; the Falkland Islands; polar regions; migration; protocol; human resources;OSCE and Council
Europe and the
Duncan of Europe; relations with Parliament; FCO finance; knowledge and technology UK Trade &
Americas
KCMG MP
Investment (with
The Rt BIS)
Minister of
Hon.
State for the The Middle East and North Africa; estates and security
Alistair Website www.gov.uk/fco
Middle East
Burt MP
Minister of Department business in theHouse of Lords; the Commonwealth; the UN, peacekeeping conflict and
The Lord
State for the International Criminal Court;Overseas Territories (excluding the Falklands, Sovereign Base Areas and
Ahmad of
Commonwealth Gibraltar); the Caribbean; human rights and modern slavery; national security; national security:
Wimbledon
and the UN counter terrorism, countering violent extremism and cyber
Minister of
The Rt
State for Asia Asia (except Central Asia);Australasia and the Pacific; communications, public diplomacy and
Hon. Mark
and the Pacific scholarships; the British Council; economic diplomacy; ministerial oversight of FCO Services
Field MP
(Unpaid)

The Rt
Hon.
Minister of
Harriet Africa; consular policy; FCO representative for cross-Whitehall funds; international crime; stabilisation
State for Africa
Baldwin
MP

History of the department

History of United Kingdom government departments with responsibility for foreign affairs
 Northern Department Foreign Office
1660–1782 1782–1968
Secretaries Secretaries
Undersecretaries Ministers
Undersecretaries

Colonial Colonial Office

Office War and 1925–1966
1768–1782 Colonial Secretaries
Southern Secretaries Colonial Ministers
Home Office War Office Office
Department Undersecretaries Office Undersecretaries
1782–1794 1794–1801 1801–1854 Commonwealth
1660–1768 1854–1925
Southern Secretaries Secretaries Secretaries Dominions
Secretaries Secretaries Office
Department Undersecretaries Undersecretaries Undersecretaries Office
Undersecretaries Undersecretaries 1966–1968
1768–1782 1925–1947 Commonwealth Secretaries
Secretaries Secretaries Relations Ministers
Undersecretaries Undersecretaries Office Undersecretaries

India Office 1947–1966

India Office and Secretaries
1858–1937 Burma Office Ministers
. Undersecretaries
Secretaries 1937–1947
Undersecretaries Secretaries
Undersecretaries

The Foreign Office

Eighteenth century

The Foreign Office was formed in March 1782 by combining the Southern and Northern Departments of the Secretary of State, each of which covered
both foreign and domestic affairs in their parts of the Kingdom. The two departments' foreign affairs responsibilities became the Foreign Office, whilst
their domestic affairs responsibilities were assigned to the Home Office. The Home Office is technically the senior.[4]

Nineteenth century

During the 19th century, it was not infrequent for the Foreign Office to approach The Times newspaper and ask for continental intelligence, which was
The Foreign Office building by Sir
often superior to that conveyed by official sources.[5] Examples of journalists who specialized in foreign affairs and were well connected to politicians
George Gilbert Scott, viewed from
included: Henry Southern, Valentine Chirol, Harold Nicolson, andRobert Bruce Lockhart.[6]
Horse Guards Road

Twentieth century

During World War I, the Arab Bureau was set up within the British Foreign Office as a section of the Cairo Intelligence Department.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The FCO was formed in 1968, from the merger of the short-lived Commonwealth Office and the Foreign Office.[7] The Commonwealth Office had been created only in 1966, by the merger of the
Commonwealth Relations Office and the Colonial Office, and the Commonwealth Relations Office had been formed by the merger of the Dominions Office and the India Office in 1947—with the
Dominions Office having been split from the Colonial Office in 1925.

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office held responsibility for international developmentissues between 1970 and 1974, and again between 1979 and 1997. From 1997, this became the responsibility of
the separate Department for International Development.

fairs from 1945.[8]

The National Archiveswebsite contains a Government timeline to show the departments responsible for Foreign Af

Developments
When David Miliband took over as Foreign Secretary in June 2007, he set in hand a review of the FCO’s strategic priorities. One of the key messages of these discussions was the conclusion that the
existing framework of ten international strategic priorities, dating from 2003, was no longer appropriate. Although the framework had been useful in helping the FCO plan its work and allocate its
resources, there was agreement that it needed a new framework to drive its work forward.

The new strategic framework consists of three core elements:

A flexible global network of staff and offices, serving the whole of the UK Government.
Three essential services that support the British economy , British nationals abroad and managed migration for Britain. These services are delivered through
UK Trade &
Investment (UKTI), consular teams in Britain and overseas, andUK Visas and Immigration.
Four policy goals:

countering terrorism and weapons proliferation and their causes

preventing and resolving conflict
promoting a low carbon, high-growth, global economy
developing effective international institutions,in particular the United Nations and the European Union.

In August 2005, a report by management consultant groupCollinson Grant was made public by Andrew Mackinlay. The report severely criticised the FCO's management structure, noting:

The Foreign Office could be "slow to act".

Delegation is lacking within the management structure.
Accountability was poor.
The FCO could feasibly cut 1200 jobs.
At least £48 million could be saved annually
.
The Foreign Office commissioned the report to highlight areas which would help it achieve its pledge to reduce spending by £87 million over three years. In response to the report being made public, the
Foreign Office stated it had already implementedthe report's recommendations.[9]

.[10]
In 2009, Gordon Brown created the position of chief scientific adviser (CSA) to the FCO. The first science adviser was David C. Clary
On 25 April 2010, the department apologised after The Sunday Telegraph obtained a "foolish" document calling for the upcoming September visit of Pope Benedict XVI to be marked by the launch of
"Benedict-branded" condoms, the opening of an abortion clinic and the blessing of asame-sex marriage.[11]

In 2012, the Foreign Office was criticised by Gerald Steinberg, of the Jerusalem-based research institute,NGO Monitor, saying that the Foreign Office and the Department for International Development
to Palestinian NGOs provided more than £500,000 in funding to Palestinian NGOs which he says "promote political attacks on Israel." In response, a spokesman for the Foreign Office said, “we are very
careful about who and what we fund. The objective of our funding is to support efforts to achieve a two-state solution. Funding a particular project for a limited period of time does not mean that we
[12]
endorse every single action or public comment made by an NGO or by its employees.”

In September 2012, the FCO and the Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs signed a Memorandum of Understanding on diplomatic cooperation, which promotes the co-location of embassies, the joint
[13]
provision of consular services, and common crisis response. The project has been criticised for further diminishing the UK's influence in Europe.

Overseas Territories Directorate

The Overseas Territories Directorate is responsible for theBritish Overseas Territories.[14]

FCO Services
In April 2006, a new executive agency was established, FCO Services, to provide corporate service functions.[15] In April 2008 it moved to Trading Fund status so it had the ability to provide similar
services which it already offers to the FCO,[16] to other government departments and even outside businesses.

It is accountable to the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, and provides secure support services to the FCO, other government departments and foreign governments and bodies
with which the UK has close links.[17]

Since 2011, FCO Services has been developing the Government Secure Application Environment (GSAE) on a securecloud computing platform to support UK government organisations.[18]

For over 10 years, FCO Services has been working globally, to keep customer assets and information safe. FCO Services is a public sector organisation, it is not funded by Vote and has to rely on the
income it produces to meet its costs, by providing services on a commercial basis to customers both in the UK and throughout the world. Its Accounting Officer and Chief Executive is accountable to the
Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Af
fairs and to Parliament, for the organisation's performance and conduct.

Buildings
As well as embassies abroad, the FCO has premises within the UK:

Foreign and Commonwealth Office Main Building, Whitehall, King Charles St, London (abbreviated to KCS by FCO staf f)
Old Admiralty Building, Whitehall, London (abbreviated to OAB by FCO staff)
Hanslope Park, Hanslope, Milton Keynes (abbreviated to HSP by FCO staff). Location of FCO Services, HMGCC and Technical
Security Department of the UKSecret Intelligence Service)
Lancaster House, St James's, London. A mansion in the St James's district in the W est End of London which the Foreign Office holds
on lease from the Crown. It is used primarily for hospitality
, entertaining foreign dignitaries and housingThe Government Wine Cellar.
The western end of the Foreign and
Commonwealth Office’s building in
Foreign and Commonwealth Office Main Building 1866, facing St. James's Park. It was
then occupied by the Foreign and
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office occupies a building which originally provided premises for four separate government departments: the Foreign India Offices, while the Home and
Office, the India Office, the Colonial Office, and the Home Office. Construction on the building began in 1861 and finished in 1868, and it was designed Colonial Offices occupied the
Whitehall end
by the architect George Gilbert Scott.[19] Its architecture is in theItalianate style; Scott had initially envisaged aGothic design, but Lord Palmerston, then
Prime Minister, insisted on a classical style.[19] English sculptors Henry Hugh Armsteadand John Birnie Philip produced a number of allegorical figures
('Art', 'Law', 'Commerce', etc.) for the exterior
.

In 1925 the Foreign Office played host to the signing of the Locarno Treaties, aimed at reducing tension in Europe. The ceremony took place in a suite of rooms
that had been designed for banqueting, which subsequently became known as the Locarno Suite.[20] During the Second World War, the Locarno Suite's fine
fice code-breaking department.[20]
furnishings were removed or covered up, and it became home to a foreign of

Due to increasing numbers of staff, the offices became increasingly cramped and much of the fine Victorian interior was covered over—especially after World War
Leslie Martin.[19] A subsequent public outcry
II. In the 1960s, demolition was proposed, as part of major redevelopment plan for the area drawn up by architect Sir
fice became a Grade 1listed building in 1970.[19] In 1978, the Home office moved
prevented these proposals from ever being implemented. Instead, the Foreign Of
to a new building, easing overcrowding.

With a new sense of the building's historical value, it underwent a 17-year, £100 million restoration process, completed in 1997.[19] The Locarno Suite, used as
offices and storage since the Second World War, was fully restored for use in international conferences. The building is now open to the public each year over
Open House Weekend.

fice employees into one building was started byMace.[21]

In 2014 refurbishment to accommodate all Foreign and Commonwealth Of

The Grand Staircase in

September 2013

Ceiling above the Foreign The Grand Staircase, 2008 The Locarno Suite in
Office’s Grand Staircase, September 2013
2008
 The Durbar Court at the
former India Office, now part
of the FCO

Devolution
International relations are handled centrally from Westminster on behalf of the whole of Britain and its dependencies. However, the devolved administrations also maintain an overseas presence in the
European Union, the USA and China alongside British diplomatic missions. These offices aim to promote their regional economies and ensure that devolved interests are taken into account in British
foreign policy. Ministers from devolved administrations can attend international negotiations when agreed with the British Government e.g. EU fisheries negotiations.[22] Similarly, ministers from the
devolved administrations meet at approximately quarterly intervals through the Joint Ministerial Committee (Europe), chaired by the Foreign Secretary to "discuss matters bearing on devolved
responsibilities that are under discussion within the European Union."

See also
Department for International Development
Foreign and Commonwealth Office migrated archives
National Security Adviser (United Kingdom)
National Security Council (United Kingdom)
Conflict, Stability and Security Fund
Stabilisation Unit

References
1. Foreign Office Settlement(https://www.gov.uk/government/news/foreign-offices-settle
ment-at-the-spending-review-2015). London: HM Treasury. 2015. Retrieved 20 May
2016.
2. "Our ministers" (https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/foreign-commonwealth
-office). GOV.UK. Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
3. "Her Majesty's Official Opposition" (http://www.parliament.uk/mps-lords-and-offices/go
vernment-and-opposition1/opposition-holding/) . UK Parliament. Retrieved
2017-10-17.
4. A brief history of the FCO(https://web.archive.org/web/20080516232053/http://www .f
co.gov.uk/en/about-the-fco/history-and-buildings/a-brief-history-fco/) Foreign and
Commonwealth Office
5. Weller, Toni (June 2010). "The Victorian information age: nineteenth century answers
to today's information policy questions?"(http://www.historyandpolicy.org/papers/polic
y-paper-104.html). History & Policy. United Kingdom: History & Policy. Retrieved
9 December 2010.
6. Berridge, G. R. "A Diplomatic Whistleblower in the Victorian Era" (http://grberridge.dipl
omacy.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/GrenvilleMurray.01.pdf) (PDF).
grberridge.diplomacy.edu. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
7. "The Foreign and Commonwealth Ministries merge"(https://news.google.com/newsp
apers?id=CNs9AAAAIBAJ&sjid=9UcMAAAAIBAJ&pg=2968%2C3208117) . The
Glasgow Herald. 17 October 1968. p. 1. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
8. Archives, The National."The National Archives - Homepage"(http://labs.nationalarchi
ves.gov.uk/foreign-affairs-timeline/). labs.nationalarchives.gov.uk.
9. "BBC NEWS - UK - UK Politics - Foreign Office management damned"(http://news.b
bc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/4745467.stm).
10. Clary, David (2013-09-16). "A Scientist in the Foreign Office" (http://www.sciencediplo
macy.org/editorial/2013/scientist-in-foreign-office). Science & Diplomacy. 2 (3).
11. "Apology over Pope 'condom' memo"(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8642404.st
m). BBC News. 25 April 2010.
12. " 'Investigate UK funding of Palestinian NGOs'" (http://www.thejc.com/news/uk-news/
82746/investigate-uk-funding-palestinian-ngos%E2%80%99) . thejc.com.
13. Gaspers, Jan (November 2012)."At the Helm of a New Commonwealth Diplomatic
Network: In the United Kingdom's Interest?"(http://fpc.org.uk/articles/569). Retrieved
2012-11-26.
14. Foreign & Commonwealth Office (June 2012). The Overseas Territories: Security,
Success and Sustainability(https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/
attachment_data/file/12249/ot-wp-0612.pdf)(PDF). ISBN 9780101837422.
15. "Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs" (https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm20050
6/cmhansrd/vo060320/wmstext/60320m02.htm) . Hansard. March 2006.
16. "The FCO Services Trading Fund Order 2008" (http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/200
8/590/contents/made). UK Legislation. National Archives. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
17. "Who we are" (https://web.archive.org/web/20130222040146/https://www
.fcoservices.
gov.uk/eng/ourorganisation/who_we_are.asp). FCO Services. 24 May 2011. Archived
from the original on 22 February 2013. Retrieved 18 June 2011.
18. Say, Mark (21 July 2011). "FCO Services pushes secure cloud platform"(https://www.
theguardian.com/government-computing-network/2011/jul/21/fco-services-huddle-gsa
e-cloud). Guardian Government Computing. Retrieved May 1, 2012.
19. Foreign & Commonwealth Office History (http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/410
3709/fco-history.pdf) Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20120924111355/http://w
ww.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/4103709/fco-history .pdf) 24 September 2012 at the
Wayback Machine.
20. "Foreign & Commonwealth Office: Route" (https://web.archive.org/web/20120924111
418/http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/4103709/fco-route.pdf)(PDF). FCO.
Archived from the original (http://www.fco.gov.uk/resources/en/pdf/4103709/fco-route.
pdf) (PDF) on 24 September 2012.
21. "Mace wins £20m Whitehall Foreign Office refit" (http://www.constructionenquirer.co
m/2014/05/23/mace-wins-20m-whitehall-foreign-of fice-refit/).
constructionenquirer.com.
22. Scottish gains at Euro fish talks(http://www.scotland.gov.uk/News/Releases/2009/12/
16083517), Scottish Government, 16 December 2009

External links
Media related to Foreign and Commonwealth Office at Wikimedia Commons
Official website
Cockerell, Michael (1998).How to Be Foreign Secretary(Television production). BBC.
Cockerell, Michael (2010).The Great Offices of State: Palace of Dreams(Television production). BBC.

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