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+600 Members
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Branches in 40 Countries
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+600 Members
Worldwide
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March 2006
New FCO Guide for Brits Overseas
STRAW LAUNCHES CONSULAR GUIDE (21/03/06)
Jack Straw today launched Support for British Nationals Abroad: a Guide in an
oral statement to the House of Commons. This is the first time that the details
of what the Foreign Office can – and can't – do to help British people in
trouble abroad have been set out in a single document.
The new Guide comes against a context of rapidly-rising demand by Britons
overseas for the Foreign Office's help, with three times as many trips abroad
from the UK as in the mid-1980s, and 13 million British nationals now living
abroad. It sets the service that British Embassies can offer in a range of
different situations – whether visiting people who are in hospital or prison,
working to rescue victims of forced marriage abroad, or simply issuing emergency
passports to people whose documents have been lost or stolen. Every year the
FCO's 1,800 consular staff in almost 200 countries deals with 3.5 million
enquiries, including 860,000 people who come to our consulates in person. We
provide Travel Advice notices on 217 countries and territories, and our travel
advice website receives 400,000 visitors a month.
Equally, the Guide sets the boundaries for what help the FCO can provide. It
makes clear, for example, that people cannot expect public funds to be used to
cover medical costs incurred abroad or to help find property overseas, and that
the FCO cannot get people out of jail. The Guide contains a wealth of tips on
how to stay safe overseas, and how travellers can protect themselves if things
go wrong.
Jack Straw said:
'Falling sick, being a victim of crime or facing an emergency are traumatic
events under any circumstances. When these problems happen abroad, they can be
even more difficult and frightening. So there is no more important task for the
Foreign Office than our work to help British nationals in distress overseas. I
hope that this new Guide will help British nationals travelling or living abroad
know what support we can offer in different cases.'
The Guide will be available through libraries, Citizens Advice Bureaux and
community centres throughout the UK, and through the FCO's website:
www.fco.gov.uk/travel/publications. A summary document, in leaflet form, will be
available at selected airports and through many of the FCO's 180 travel industry
partners in the “Know Before You Go” travel safety campaign.
As well as the English versions, both documents will also be available in
Arabic, Bengali, Chinese, Gujerati, Punjabi and Urdu.
The new Guide fulfils a manifesto commitment and is the product of wide
consultation with the travel industry, NGOs, consumer groups and
parliamentarians. It received the Plain English Campaign's Crystal Mark for
clarity.
Notes to editors
British people make 65 million overseas trips a year – three times the figure of
the mid-1980s. We're seeing greater increases in trips by more vulnerable groups
such as the young and the elderly. 13 million British nationals live overseas.
The FCO's consular staff handles 85,000 new cases requiring the most acute
support every year. Over the last year they included
4,200 British nationals hospitalised overseas;
3,900 deaths;
around 150 new cases of child abduction and 250 of forced marriage;
and support to almost 6,000 British detainees.
Over the last 3 years the FCO's Rapid-Deployment teams to deal with emergencies
involving British nationals have deployed 15 times.
Foreign Office staff also provide specific services such as the Hajj delegation
to assist British pilgrims to the Holy places of the Islamic faith, and special
deployments for major sporting events such as this summer's World Cup in
Germany.
The new Guide fulfils a commitment in the Government's manifesto at the 2005
election to “consult widely before drawing up a comprehensive statement” of what
the FCO can and can't do for those British nationals who get into difficulty
overseas.
The FCO's global consular operation is funded through a levy on every British
passport issued - £9.65 on a full ten issued - £9.65 on a full ten-year
passport, or less than £1 per year for every passport holder.
To go to the FCO website click on the following link: