HC Deb 27 November 2000 vol 357 c393W
Mr. Wigley

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions he has had with officers of the British Council concerning plans to close its provincial offices in Germany. [140007]

Mr. Hain

All the proposals contained in the British Council's new strategy were fully discussed with FCO officials and endorsed by my right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary. The proposals for Germany were agreed on the basis that Germany would continue to have the largest grant-in-aid budget in Europe, that core programmes would be retained and that funds released through reducing infrastructure costs would be channelled into new programmes, for example to develop IT services to provide widespread access, especially for young professional people.