§ MR. BOWLES (Lambeth, Norwood)I beg to ask the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire, as Chairman of the Public Accounts Committee, whether his attention has been called to a paragraph in The Times newspaper of Thursday last, the 18th July, purporting to give an account of certain passages in the Second Report of the Committee; whether he is aware that this Report had not then been presented.
§ MR. VICTOR CAVENDISH (Derbyshire, W.)My attention has been called to this matter. The Report was presented on the 16th and was sent at once to the printers and has not yet been circulated to the House. The House will, I am sure, agree that such premature publication is most objectionable. I can assure my hon. friend that as long as I have the honour to be Chairman of the Committee I shall do my best to prevent it. I think it fair to add that the Committee have always received the most hearty co-operation from the officials connected with the House in preventing any such disclosures in the past, and I am sure we may rely on that co-operation in the future.