§ Norman LambTo ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what surveys of public perceptions of his Department and of its areas of responsibility have taken place over the last 12 months; what the(a) title and (b) nature of these surveys was; what the findings of each survey were; where these findings have been published; what the cost of such surveys was; and if he will make a statement and place copies of the surveys in the Library. [176942]
§ Mr. MullinThe Foreign and Commonwealth Office, together with UK Trade and Investment, the British Council and Visit Britain, jointly commissioned an International Tracking Study, comprising opinion poll research carried out in October 2003 in 15 countries, which benchmarked attitudes towards the UK against key competitors. The costs were shared jointly by the four organisations, and amounted to £64,000 each. We are placing the report of the findings in the Library of the House. In addition to this quantitative survey, we have also conducted some qualitative research (primarily relatively low-cost focus groups) to help target our public diplomacy activities.