§ 20. Mr. Evelyn Kingasked the Minister for the Civil Service on how may occasions in the last two years printing required by the House of Commons has been delayed on account of difficulties at Her Majesty's Stationery Office.
§ Mr. Kenneth BakerThere have been delays in normal delivery time for some papers in this period on 120 occasions. Of these, 26 were due to industrial action in the press, 48 to excessive work load, and 46 to other reasons. In most cases the delay was short, and on all occasions the House was provided with essential working papers by one means or other.
§ Mr. KingFirst, in the light of that reply, is my hon. Friend aware that his response to me on 19th February last, when he gave the figure of 16 occasions 792 of delay, must have been wildly inaccurate? Will he look into the source of the advice which he then received? Second, is he aware that the position in which the Deliverer of the Vote is now being placed is becoming impossible? Third, will he tell the House how he proposes to deal with the growing difficulties, and whether he will consider seeking alternative sources of supply?
§ Mr. BakerI am not aware of any discrepancy between this and the earlier reply. The facts are as I have stated them. I am glad to take this opportunity to thank the Vote Office and the Deliverer of the Vote for coping very well with the difficulties in getting essential papers—the Votes and Proceedings and the Order Paper—to the House during the industrial disputes. On the question of alternative printing arrangements, I remind the House that the Parliamentary Press, just on the other side of the river, is a major operation, employing about 600 people, which prints only material for Parliament. It would be impossible to bring that sort of operation into the precincts of the House. Any basic rearrangement of printing services for the House is a matter not for me but for the Services Committee.
§ Mr. WellbelovedIs the Minister aware that the Parliamentary Press suffers from serious environmental disadvantages for the workers, in that the temperature control in many of the print shops varies from very hot to very cold? What action are the Government taking to remove some of the causes of the industrial stoppages at the Parliamentary Press, such as environmental difficulties?
§ Mr. BakerLast year the Government spent a considerable sum of money on a new central heating and air conditioning plant. I am advised that the difficulties to which the hon. Gentleman refers have now been virtually eliminated.