Source · Select Committees · Foreign Affairs Committee
Recommendation 9
9
The FCO may have been able to communicate more effectively and proactively had it established...
Conclusion
The FCO may have been able to communicate more effectively and proactively had it established a logging system to record the location and contact details of UK citizens abroad. This could have proved particularly helpful for those without access to the internet. The FCO’s LOCATE database was discontinued due to disuse in 2013, but the COVID-19 pandemic may have increased the public’s willingness to share this kind of information during times of crisis. The FCO should look into the feasibility of establishing a logging system to help identify UK citizens abroad in times of crisis. (Paragraph 30) Flying Home: The FCO’s consular response to the COVID-19 pandemic 17
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
As the report notes, we substantially expanded our telephony and communications capabilities over the course of the crisis. We are committed to maintaining and improving the resilience and flexibility of our communications systems and particularly our surge capacity. Specifically, we have increased the full time staffing in our global contact centres to ensure greater resilience for surges in demand. We are also training a cadre of staff in the UK and in our posts abroad in other roles who will be able to handle enquiries remotely in a crisis situation to augment our full-time contact handlers. This will provide interim support until we can bring online a greater number of outsourced call handlers, which will take at least five working days. We have also extended the channels by which British nationals can contact us at any time of day or night. For example, during the COVID-19 response we started providing written answers 24/7 through a dedicated webform on gov.uk and on the FCDO’s central social media channels ensuring that BNs were actively signposted to clear, supportive and practical advice on gov.uk. In light of the COVID-19 response we are reviewing further how we can reach British national and how they can reach us as easily as possible, including testing web chat as well as our existing channels of phone and sending messages by email and through social media. We are also exploring how we can send “push” messages directly when required, when British Nationals are travelling abroad at scale. The ambition is that these messages will be sent via the channel and tool that the individual prefers e.g. email, text messaging, or social media. The final applications used are subject to an ongoing review. WhatsApp Business is one such option. We have reviewed our proactive communications effort during the pandemic response. Our objective was to share appropriate public information to British nationals who wanted to return to the UK or remain abroad during the coronavirus pandemic. We ran six campaigns in 32 countries across 56 markets (a market here defined as a distinct audience targeted with bespoke messaging), using social media, TV adverts and partners to share messaging and ensure it reached our target audiences. From 18 March to 7 June marketing activity drove 13.7% of all Unique Pages Views (UPVs) to the main COVID-19 Travel Advice page on gov.uk. This figure is likely to be two-thirds higher when accounting for individuals who opted out of UPV tracking via cookie consent. For comparison, gov.uk emails only drove 6.2%. Adverts on social media, from 18 March to 29 May, generated at least 373,000 UPVs to gov.uk and free BBC World advertising, from 10 April to 7 June, generated at least 30,400 UPOVs. 92 partners supported the campaign, and partnership activity, from 17 March to 5 June, generated 180,000 UPVs to the main COVID-19 gov.uk page. None of this replaced, or was intended to replace, the consular support offered to individuals by our Consular Customer Contact Centres or consular officers across our global network. clear plans to follow if required.