HC Deb 19 March 1867 vol 186 cc122-3
MR. BRADY

said, he had a Question to put to the noble Lord the Chief Commissioner of Works on this subject which required a word of explanation. He understood there were some thirty seats in the Reporters' Gallery. He regretted that there was not a great number more. All those seats were appropriated to the metropolitan morning papers, to the entire exclusion, he believed, of the weekly London papers and also of the English provincial papers, as well as of the whole Irish and Scottish press, and to which it was therefore felt that great injury was done by that arrangement. He desired, therefore, to ask the First Commissioner of Works, Why it happens that, while accommodation is provided for the representatives of the London Press in the Reporters' Gallery, the representatives of the Irish and Scotch journals are excluded from all facilities for reporting the proceedings of the House?

LORD JOHN MANNERS

said, in reply, that the Reporters' Gallery of that House was under the management of the Serjeant-at-Arms, and he had every reason to believe that officer paid every attention to the comfort and convenience of the gentlemen who had duties to discharge there. It was true the accommodation there was very limited; but the desire was that the arrangements which were made should be such as would be most conducive to the convenience of all organs of public opinion, whether they were printed in London, in the Provinces, or in Ireland, or Scotland. And although, owing to the confined space, it was impossible to accommodate more than the reporters of the London press, yet it was well known that arrangements existed by which certain representatives of the London morning journals also acted for the leading newspapers of Dublin, Glasgow, and Edinburgh. In addition to that, there were telegraphic summaries of the debates sent to such of the provincial papers that required them. The provincial journals were thus enabled to publish, simultaneousely with the London papers, ample reports of what took place in that, House.

MR. BRADY

said, he would appeal to the noble Lord to enlarge the space set apart for reporters.

LORD JOHN MANNERS

said, the subject should receive careful consideration; but he was not prepared off-hand to say that the space could be enlarged.