To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many staff in the embassy in Washington deal with civil aviation matters; what are their grades; and what are their individual job specifications.

The transport policy section of the embassy comprises three diplomatic staff, some of whose time is dedicated to civil aviation matters as follows:

• Counsellor (assistant secretary): Approx 30 per cent.
• First Secretary (principal): Approx 25 per cent.
• Second secretary (senior executive officer): Approx 40 per cent.
• These are in addition two United Kingdom-based secretaries (S2s) in the section.

The Minister (commercial) also spends approximately 10 per cent. of his time on civil aviation matters; the ambassador is brought in as and when necessary.The civil aviation objectives of the section, towards which all three front-line staff work, are broadly to help formulate United Kingdom policies in the light of industry and policy developments in the United States; to influence United States policies; to resist protectionist, unilateral, or extraterritorial measures by the United States; to manage and resolve United Kingdom-United States disputes to British advantage.