Committee publication · Correspondence · 17 December 2025
Letter to the Foreign Secretary, relating to the British Council, dated 9 December 2025
From: Foreign Affairs Committee
Inquiry: Work of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office
Summary
The Foreign Affairs Committee writes to the Foreign Secretary raising concerns about the British Council's financial crisis and lack of transparency. The committee notes unanswered questions about the causes of the organisation's struggle, its restructuring plans, and long-term direction. It flags delays in publishing annual accounts (2024-25 report indefinitely delayed) as hampering scrutiny and signals intent to question the Foreign Secretary on financial settlement timelines, restructuring sustainability, and the strategic rationale for different parts of the British Council network.
Key findings
- The British Council faces an ongoing financial situation that has prompted growing alarm within the committee, with fundamental questions about causation and remediation remaining unanswered by the Permanent Under-Secretary's evidence
- Publication of annual reports and accounts is significantly delayed: the 2023-24 report published March 2025 (nine months late); the 2024-25 report delayed indefinitely, obstructing parliamentary scrutiny
- Committee questions whether the British Council's ongoing and proposed restructuring will achieve a sustainable organisation, and seeks clarity on what sustainable operation would entail
- Lack of clarity on which parts of the British Council network are strategic (soft power and public policy) versus commercial, indicating strategic incoherence in the organisation's purpose
Tone
CriticalTopics
Key actors
Yvette Cooper, Dame Emily Thornberry MP, Foreign Affairs Committee, British Council, Permanent Under-Secretary, FCDO (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Notable line
“… it is apparent to us that many questions remain unanswered-answers that would enable the Committee to get to the bottom of precisely where and why the British Council is struggling …”
Key Quotes
“As you will know, my committee has observed with growing alarm the ongoing financial situation at the British Council.”
“… it is apparent to us that many questions remain unanswered-answers that would enable the Committee to get to the bottom of precisely where and why the British Council is struggling, how it can fix this and, ultimately, what it should be doing long-term and what it needs to achieve this.”
“… the 2023-24 report was only published in March 2025, and the 2024-25 report has been delayed again, apparently indefinitely. While we recognise the going concern of the Board of Trustees, the delays also hamper our ability to scrutinise both the British Council and the relevant policies of the FCDO.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗