To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the forthcoming vacancy for the post of high commissioner to Malawi has been publicised (a) within his Department and (b) elsewhere in the civil service and applications invited. (209806)

[holding answer 10 June 2008]: The right hon. Jack McConnell MSP has been nominated to be our next high commissioner in Lilongwe. His appointment will be made under the terms of schedule 2(2) of the Diplomatic Service Order in Council 1991, which expressly allows exceptions to the normal method of recruitment. Accordingly, the post has not been advertised within the Foreign and Commonwealth Office or elsewhere within the civil service.