HC Deb 07 June 1901 vol 94 cc1331-3
MR. HERBERT LEWIS

I beg to ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether, in view of the difficulty of hearing the replies to questions, and having regard to the delay in receiving proofs of questions and answers, and the repetition, partly arising from such delay, of questions which have already been asked, and for the general convenience of Members, arrangements will be made to file in the Library copies of questions which appear on the Notice Paper, and the replies to such questions, until the Hansard Reports containing such questions and answers have been placed in the hands of Members. In asking this question perhaps I may say, in regard to the official reports, that I make no imputation or suggestion whatever against the contractors, who are fulfilling the terms of their contract.

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

The last statement of the hon. Gentleman is perfectly true—that the contract time for publication is always kept. As to the suggestion contained in the hon. Member's question, there would be, I believe, great difficulty, if not almost impossibility, in carrying it into effect. Some of the most important questions are about matters of which no notice is given, and in such cases I do not think it would be practicable to adopt the plan the hon. Gentleman recommends. The only method of meeting his views would, I think, be to devise some system by which the publication of The Parliamentary Debates would be expedited; otherwise, I think the hon. Member must depend on the reports which appear in the newspapers. Let me, however, say that all my colleagues, without exception, will only be too glad to give any Member who has asked them a question and has not caught the answer, a full statement in writing of what they have said in the House. I do not think I can add anything to that.

MR. HERBERT LEWIS

I am very much obliged to the right hon. Gentleman for the reply he has given, but, arising out of it, may I ask whether it has been brought to his notice that in the Canadian Parliament reports of each sitting are furnished to Members on the following morning, although the House frequently sits till two or three or four o'clock?

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I was not aware of the fact till the hon. Gentleman courteously informed me, and no such rapidity of production has ever been attempted in the House of Commons. Whether it would be practicable here I am not able to say.

MR. SCHWANN

Would it not be possible for two sets of replies to be sent down, so that one set might be filed in the Library?

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I am not sure that that could be done. The House must remember that the habit of asking supplementary questions—which may be a good practice or not—makes it impossible to reproduce all that occurs here by means of the printed answers given. If the House would be contented with the questions on the Paper something might be done.

MR. CORRIE GRANT (Warwickshire, Rugby)

Would it not be possible, when a Member puts a question privately to the head of a Department, for him to get a reply in a shorter time than is now taken? I put a question or two last week to the Postmaster-General and the head of another Department, and received an acknowledgment and an intimation that the questions should have attention, but I have had no further reply.

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I do not know the questions put by the hon. Member, but I am sure that every Department will do its best to give an expeditious reply to any question put by a member of the House.

MR. CORRIE GRANT

Will the right hon. Gentleman consult the contractors for Hansard as to whether it would be possible to have by the following day a verbatim report of the answers to questions simply? An attempt to do something of this kind was made some years ago, and, though it broke down, it was not from any reason such as the right hon. Gentleman has suggested, but from the failure of the machinery.

MR. A. J. BALFOUR

I doubt whether such a proposal could be carried out—at least, to the extent the hon. Gentleman supposes.