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but we have kept it short and have drafted it so that it should take little of your time to complete - by all means in manuscript if this is more convenient. I should be grateful for your reply by 22 April.
3 I attach an explanatory note on the objectives and philosophy behind Background Briefs in case you are unfamiliar with the subject. You will see that the primary objective is that Background Briefs should serve as a source of accurate, factual information on current issues of international significance for the education of influential contacts in the MFA, other Ministres, in the media and other opinion formers, especially in the Third World where there is often a lack of locally available, reliable briefing on such matters.
4 Over the past 12 months we have changed the arrangements for drafting and preparing Background Briefs in Information Department. Background Briefs are no longer written by staff doing other work. in the Department. The task has been removed from Overseas Information Administration Section and we have created a special 11-man Regional Background Briefwriting Section to do the job. The new Section works in tandem with the 5-man International Section which in addition to certain other tasks is responsible for preparing Background Briefs and papers on Northern Ireland, Terrorism and Soviet International Front Organisations. A 4-man distribution and despatch team supports both Sections. Altogether some 20 staff (2 x DS5; 4 x DS6; 7 x DS7; 4 x DS9; 2 x CO; 1 x CA) are engaged in Brief Writing.
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Taking the staff of the Regional Section and a percentage of the time of the Distribution and Despatch Section alone the total cost of the operation to the FCO is around £300,000 p.a. If we included the staff of both Regional and International Sections and the supporting distribution and despatch team the total cost would of course be higher.
6 The Regional Section has produced 60 Background Briefs over the past 15 months on a wide range of subjects (Annex A); it has 18 Briefs in preparation (Annex B); it has a further 17 Briefs on the stocks which will be written as soon as those in draft have been circulated
(Annex C). The International Section has produced 35 Briefs over the same period; it has 4 on the stocks and 5 projected (Annex D). Subject to responses to this letter, Regional Section will turn its attention to a further list of suggested Briefs (Annex E) culled from replies to the PUS's circular letter of 6 August 1984 and suggestions included in AIRS and general correspondence. If you would like copies of any of these Briefs or have further suggestions for additional Briefs please let me know.
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I am writing similarly to the Heads of Chancery at other Posts.
A L Free-Gore
Information Department