Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) correspondence sent by Royal Mail is not tracked by volume.
FCO correspondence sent to diplomatic missions overseas is dispatched in the diplomatic bag by commercial delivery services. Volumes for each of the last five financial years are as follows:
April to March each year Kilos 2002-03 407,576 2003-04 384,214 2004-05 362,109 2005-06 341,537 2006-07 332,622
The FCO’s current principal overseas mail service provider won an open Government tender in 2005 on the basis of geographical reach and value for money. Royal Mail did not tender.