§ MR. FIELDTo ask the First Lord of the Treasury whether he is aware that an order has been recently issued in the Exchequer and Audit Department threatening with instant dismissal any employee who communicates information to the Press or to any outside person whatsoever; whether he will state who is responsible for the issue of this order; whether a Member of Parliament is entitled to obtain information respecting maladministration in any Government department, provided the Official Secrets Act is not contravened; and whether, seeing that this order would deprive the House of Commons of the power of criticising the permanent officials, he will take measures to have the order annulled and prevent its repetition.
§ (Answered by Sir H. Campbell-Bannerman.) The order to which the hon. Member refers is presumably the rule which, I am informed, has for a long time been operative in the department, and which prohibits communication to the Press of information derived from official sources. This rule is based upon the Treasury Minute of 3rd June, 1873, which, together with another Minute on a similar subject, was presented to Parliament in 1884 [Cd. 3951]. I do not think that the rule has the results suggested by the hon. Member, nor do I think it is expedient to alter or withdraw the Minute.