§ Mr. George Robertsonasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many senior members of the Diplomatic Service have been recruited in the past 10 years from outside the service; at what level they have served; and for how long.
§ Mr. PymIn the last 10 years two senior members of the Diplomatic Service have been appointed from outside the service:
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- United Kingdom Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York 1974–79.
- Her Majesty's Ambassador, Washington 1977–79.
There have also been two occasions on which retired members of the service have been recalled to take up a further appointment:
- Her Majesty's Ambassador, Washington 1979–82.
- Her Majesty's Ambassador, Washington 1982-.
In addition, the posts of Minister and deputy permanent representative and Minister (Agriculture) at the office of the United Kingdom permanent representative to the European Community are currently filled by Home civil servants on secondment to the Diplomatic Service, as other similar posts have been in the past.