Inquiry launch: Soft power: a strategy for UK success?
8 January 2025
Today the Foreign Affairs Committee announces a new inquiry into the extent and effectiveness of the UK’s soft power.
The inquiry will examine the Government’s upcoming soft power strategy and asks whether the UK’s approach to soft power complements the Government’s wider foreign policy objectives.
This inquiry runs concurrent to the Government’s launch of the Soft Power Council and its ongoing Soft Power review. Throughout the course of this inquiry, the Foreign Affairs Committee will seek to scrutinise both.
This inquiry considers what tangible advantages soft power brings to the UK. In particular, it will explore the UK’s soft power strengths, focusing on diplomacy, foreign policy, post-conflict reconstruction, commitment to the rules-based international order, culture, trade, the media, the economy and education. The inquiry will examine what has worked and where improvements might be made.
It also asks how the UK’s soft power might be measured and considers how the UK’s soft power offering compares to its allies and adversaries around the world. Countries including China, India, Russia and Turkey have invested significantly in their soft power offerings globally. This inquiry will explore what, in this environment, the UK’s “USP” might be.
This inquiry will be long-running and is likely to last until the end of this Parliament. There is likely to be a series of outputs, including interim reports and correspondence, rather than one single report.
The deadline for the call for evidence is Monday 3 March 2025.
Chair comment
Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Dame Emily Thornberry MP, said:
“The UK is a world leader when it comes to soft power, punching well above our weight. The UK is largely seen as a force for good, and a fair and balanced voice on the world stage. Many of our artistic and cultural institutions are well-loved and widely recognised. The British values of liberalism, tolerance and respect for the rule of law are emulated across the world.
“While soft power is one of the UK’s greatest strengths, we can’t afford to be complacent. Countries such as China, Russia and India are building up their soft power offer in the form of diplomatic, educational and cultural exchanges, and have shown they will fill any gaps left by the UK and other like-minded countries moving on. While the UK has successfully made the case for democratic values in the past, new, competing narratives seek to undermine this.
“This inquiry will ask how the UK can maintain its status as a soft power superpower. We will examine the UK Government’s soft power strategy, asking how this strategy complements our wider foreign policy objectives. The inquiry will ask what tangible benefits soft power delivers to the UK and will examine the new Soft Power Council.
“As soft power cuts across many facets of foreign policy, this inquiry will be open-ended and is likely to run until the end of the Parliament. We plan on producing a number of outputs focusing on different aspects of soft power and for soft power to be a thread through the rest of our work.
“This initial call for evidence will help us to build a picture of the UK’s current soft power – we want to know what the UK’s strengths and weakness are, and what strategy the Government should adopt in order to maintain our soft power advantage”.
The Committee welcomes written evidence on:
- Why is soft power important? How might this concept be measured? What tangible benefits does soft power provide to the UK’s international relationships? To trade? To support for the rules-based international order?
- What should the objective of soft power be, for example, to achieve economic growth for the UK overseas, bolster its influence or other?
- What are the UK’s soft power strengths, with reference to diplomacy, post-conflict reconstruction, culture, the media, the economy and education? How is the UK perceived overseas? In what ways does this perception differ regionally or by country?
- How do FCDO arms-length bodies, including the British Council, BBC World Service and British International Investment, contribute towards the UK’s soft power strengths? What is the value for money of these organisations, when considering soft power returns?
- What role does soft power play in the UK’s role as a leading actor in conflict resolution?
- How effective is the FCDO in leading HMG’s soft power approach across Government, and overseas? Where can these efforts be improved? What contribution should the Soft Power Council make?
- How does HMG demonstrate commitment to supporting British soft power sectors abroad?
- How might the FCDO engage with the media and the private sector to strengthen its soft power offering?
- How does soft power interact with and complement the UK’s foreign policy? In what ways does soft power support the UK’s foreign policy? Are there challenges in this relationship?
- How does the UK counter the soft power influence and narrative of other major powers including China, India, Russia and Turkey?
- What role do regional and international organisations play in bolstering the UK’s soft power offer? How might the UK build partnerships and alliances with these organisations to achieve its soft power goals?
Each submission should be no longer than 3,000 words and contain a brief introduction about the author. Submissions should be in malleable format such as MS Word (not PDFs) with no use of colour, logos or photos. Further guidance is available on our Written Evidence Guidance.
Further information
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