HC Deb 16 July 1968 vol 768 cc1252-3
Q7. Mr. Alexander W. Lyon

asked the Prime Minister when Her Majesty's Government will consult with all interested bodies, including the British Broadcasting Corporation, the Independent Television Authority, the Press and the film industry, to devise a policy for selecting and retaining information for a National Archive.

The Prime Minister

The National Film Archive preserves selected film and television material of artistic and historic importance and the British Institute of Recorded Sound fulfils a similar rôle for sound recordings. The British Broadcasting Corporation and Independent Television Companies have extensive archives for programme purposes. Copies of all newspapers published in Great Britain are deposited with the British Museum. In view of these existing arrangements, I am not clear what purpose would be served by the consultations my hon. Friend has in mind.

Mr. Lyon

Would my right hon. Friend agree that there would be some purpose in having overall control of the selection and retention of information, so that the material which would be passed on to future historians about this period is not simply at the whim of individuals who are under no public control?

The Prime Minister

The position is not entirely as described by my hon. Friend. There is considerable co-operation between the various bodies working in the field of film, television and sound recordings, and I am not sure that a more centralised archive would necessarily achieve the best results. If my hon. Friend has any particular ideas, however, I will certainly see that they are considered.

Mr. Bessell

Would the right hon. Gentleman agree that, as none of the various organisations which he mentioned are under any legislative obligation to retain its archives, there might be an advantage in having a national archive which would be obliged to retain its records?

The Prime Minister

I am not sure— it is, of course, up to the hon. Gentleman to argue his case—that a legislative requirement would add to the very keen desire of all those operating the archives which I mentioned to do everything possible to conserve anything which is of historic and national interest. I would need to be persuaded of that proposition.