§ 38. Mr. Allaunasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will make a statement on the Press cutting service made available by his Department to hon. Members.
§ Mr. DiamondMy Department does not provide any such service for hon. Members.
§ Mr. AllaunI thank my right hon. Friend for the fact that the Treasury pays £2,800 a year towards this new scheme. As he has some responsibility, will he bring the attention of hon. Members to this library, which will help them to do their work far more effectively and more quickly and which is a replica of the service provided by The Times Press cutting service?
§ Mr. DiamondI am grateful to my hon. Friend, who is, of course, referring to the service provided by the Library.
§ Sir G. NabarroIs the Chief Secretary aware that a Press cutting service for hon. Members is allowed as a charge against Schedule D but not against Schedule E, and will he therefore reconsider his earlier answer, which was entirely wrong?
§ Mr. DiamondI shall be grateful if the hon. Gentleman will send me any particulars, which I shall be only too glad to look into. I expect that the hon. Gentleman was talking about his own affairs. I confirm the precision of the words which I used in my previous statement.
§ Sir R. CaryHow long has this Press cutting service been in existence?
§ Mr. DiamondI think since June.
§ Mr. AbseWill it be noted that the Press cutting service will have been charged by the hon. Member for Worcestershire, South (Sir G. Nabarro) as a deductible expense in his capacity not as a Member of Parliament but as a public entertainer on television?