Reeves to cut allowances of British diplomats overseas
British diplomats based overseas will have their living allowances slashed by Rachel Reeves under plans to reduce costs.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) is reviewing the payments made to embassy staff around the world after this week's spending review, which will force the department to make day-to-day savings of 7 per cent in real terms.
Ambassadors and other senior diplomats will have their 'specific allowances' for overseas postings 'reviewed and revised' as part of the efficiency drive.
Diplomatic sources told The Telegraph they now fear having to pay their own rent in foreign countries, if housing allowances are reduced.
Foreign staff receive a variety of extra payments under the FCDO's 'Overseas Employment Framework', including a general allowance for working overseas, additional payments for spouses and 'danger money' for working in hostile countries.
The department does not routinely publish the cost of overseas allowances, but a Freedom of Information request in 2017 revealed that the annual cost is in excess of £23 million.
Diplomats subject to cost-cutting for two years
Ms Reeves, the Chancellor, slashed administrative budgets of all Whitehall departments in her spending review on Wednesday, but the Foreign Office has borne the brunt of the cuts and will be forced to save £78 million a year.
The latest spending figures also reflected a significant cut of the overseas development aid (ODA) budget, which is administered by the FCDO, to find an increase in defence spending.
A 'departmental efficiency' document published alongside the spending review said the FCDO would 'reform the Overseas Employment Framework to modernise and simplify the end-to-end overseas allowance package for staff, streamlining provisions to make the system more transparent'.
It added: 'Aspects of the package will be combined to reduce processing costs, while the monetary value of specific allowances are being reviewed and revised.'
Diplomats told The Telegraph that they have faced cost-cutting measures for more than two years, and that hospitality expenses were now very closely scrutinised by the department.
One said that even the cost of a cup of coffee with a diplomatic contact overseas would require extensive justification, and that many civil servants choose to pay for expenses out of their own pocket.
Exact measures to be decided
Other allowances, such as the policy to pay thousands of pounds a year for the children of diplomats to attend private boarding schools in the UK, have already come under scrutiny in recent years.
In November, the FCDO wrote to top boarding schools to ask for the children of diplomats to be given discounts on their school fees, to offset the cost of Labour's tax raid on private schools.
Foreign staff are usually given a generous stipend to pay for living expenses, to allow them to rent a property overseas while maintaining a home in the UK.
But some choose to sell their homes in the UK when working abroad, allowing them to live without any housing costs while away on a posting.
The Telegraph understands that the exact 'modernisation' reforms to diplomatic allowances have not yet been decided.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
25 minutes ago
- The Independent
River Island eyes store closures following £33m losses
Fashion retailer River Island is undergoing a restructuring process that could lead to the closure of 33 UK stores and put hundreds of jobs at risk. An additional 71 stores face uncertainty as the company seeks improved rental deals with landlords to combat a recent slump in trading. The family-owned chain, which employs around 5,500 people, has hired advisors from PwC to oversee the restructuring. The proposals, aimed at securing fresh funding and turning around the business, will be put to a vote by the firm's creditors in August. River Island reported a 33.2 million pound loss in 2023, with sales down 19 per cent, attributed to weaker consumer spending and competition from online rivals.
BBC News
30 minutes ago
- BBC News
Councillor suspended from Labour over 'offensive' social media
A Labour councillor has been suspended by his local party over social media posts he made more than a decade ago that were deemed racist and supportive of far-right activist Tommy UK highlighted "offensive" posts that they claimed had been made by Ben Westwick - a councillor at Basildon Council in leader Gavin Callaghan said he took the action against Westwick "after I was made aware of social media posts made... before he was elected in 2024".Westwick, who now sits as an independent councillor for Pitsea South East, has been contacted for comment by the BBC. A Twitter/X account belonging to Ben Westwick, which has not had any new posts since 2014, included posts such as one with a sexually explicit image and another that was racist against black people and that included a monkey 2012, his account tweeted "@EDLTrobinson tommy Robinson for prime minister". Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is a far-right activist who founded the English Defence League (EDL) and has just been released from prison having served a sentence for contempt of said in a statement: "Whilst I accept that Ben was a young man when he posted these comments and that he has changed his views on a number of issues, I do not believe it is right for him to represent the Labour Party on the council at this time."The local Reform UK party has called for Westwick's "immediate resignation" based on what they call his "numerous offensive, racist, and deeply inappropriate comments made across his social media accounts".Having the whip removed means a politician is no longer obliged to vote with his party at council meetings. It also usually means an individual is suspended from the political party they are a member has been contacted by the BBC about Westwick's party there are two by-elections for Basildon Council due to take place over the next is in Wickford Park ward next Thursday, following the death of Wickford Independents' Dave Harrison, and one in St Martins ward on 17 July after Labour's Maryam Yaqub stood down earlier this month. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
30 minutes ago
- BBC News
Revamped Kirkstone Pass Inn will 'not be aimed' at hens and stags
The newest owners of a historical pub have dismissed rumours its rooms may be marketed at stag and hen highest pub, the Kirkstone Pass Inn, had provided respite for travellers for centuries and was bought by Supreme Escapes in firm is renovating the already existing rooms and turning the old keeper's house into holiday accommodation, but said the bar area would not change and operate for the public, whether there was a booking or Lake District National Park Authority (LDNPA) said it recognised concerns about "potential loss of historic character" and had opened an investigation to monitor the use of the building. The centuries-old former pub stands at 1,481ft (451m) above sea level, on an exposed hillside above was frequented by visitors who made it up the Kirkstone Pass - known locally as "the struggle" - before it was put on the market in 2021, sitting empty for works sparked concerns online about the future use of the site and whether the changes were kept within the building's character and location. 'Almost derelict' Jerry Huppert, a partner in Supreme Escapes, told BBC Radio Cumbria the building was being renovated sympathetically and they had already spend about £3m on the building."The pub was very, very tired - almost derelict beyond repair," he added while located four miles (6.4km) away from the nearest neighbours, the accommodation was not being marketed to hen and stag parties - as had been speculated added: "Although our company generally specialises in holiday lets, we have recently moved into a new business model of boutique hotels and this is our first one."The building would also continue to operate as a pub, Mr Huppert said, and he was hoping it would reopen in the summer. Car park plans Planning manager for LDNPA Julie Birkett said the building was not listed and therefore internal works did not require planning permission, "regardless of their impact on internal historic features or character".She added a previous investigation concluded the building's new and renewed roughcast render was not an act of development as defined by law, and therefore did not need planning had also been raised online about preserving public access to the pub's car park, which is used by Huppert said there was a long lease on the carpark to the LDNPA."We have approached [the LDNPA] to see what their plan is at the end of the lease and they said they will touch base to us about a year or two before the end of the lease," he LDNPA confirmed the lease was due to expire in 2029 and renewal options would be considered closer to that date. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
