HC Deb 29 October 2002 vol 391 cc757-8W
Dr. Julian Lewis

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what methods of issuing travel warnings to British citizens are regularly employed in addition to notices on the Foreign and Commonwealth Office website; and what change there has been in the use of each other method of issuing travel warnings to British citizens since the advent of the FCO website. [76691]

Mr. Mike O'Brien

Since 1996 the FCO have published travel advice on the FCO website. The advice is accessed regularly by the travel industry and members of the public. Many regular users arrange to receive automatic updates when travel advice changes, by using the "automatic update facility" on the FCO site.

In addition to this service, those seeking travel advice can contact the Travel Advice Unit during working hours by fax or telephone. A further 30 organisations receive daily faxed updates from the Travel Advice Unit. Travel advice, covering countries and areas to which the FCO either advise against all travel or all non-essential travel, are also published on CEEFAX (page 474). Significant changes in travel advice are also announced via press statements. CEEFAX (page 471) gives contact information for the Travel Advice Unit, and the website address, from which comprehensive travel advice may be obtained. Our posts overseas have discretion to issue local advisories, with information and advice of particular interest to the expatriate community. This is disseminated in a variety of ways, depending upon local circumstances. In countries where we have a warden network we ask wardens to pass on significant changes in travel advice.

The FCO has gone to great lengths to improve and to maximise awareness of our travel advice. The Know Before You Go (KBYG) campaign, launched in June 2001, is a market transformation campaign made up of three main strands: the FCO website, strategic partnerships and PR. The key campaign message is simple and applies to everyone: know before you go—get travel insurance and check the FCO travel advice before you go.