Corps news – Embassy 27 – July 2010

Diplomatic debt dented (a bit)

In the spirit of austerity measures to cut budget deficits, London’s diplomatic missions are paying back more of their debt than they were a year ago – although the British government is still subsidising indebted embassies to the tune of half a million pounds.

According to figures released by the Foreign Office, missions owe £574,998 in national non-domestic rates (NNDR), which is down almost 10 per cent from last year’s total of £634,205.

Diplomatic missions are obliged to pay only 6 per cent of the total NNDR which represents payment for specific services such as street cleaning, lighting, maintenance and fire services.

Only a handful of missions (4 per cent) are responsible for the outstanding debt. The Zimbabwean Embassy tops the league of indebted missions for a second year running, with a mounting debt of more than £93,000, up from £79,000 last year.