§ Q3. Mr. William Hamiltonasked the Prime Minister if he will make a further statement on progress made in the improvement of security within Government Departments.
§ The Prime MinisterAs I have told the House, security arrangements in all Government Departments are kept under constant review.
§ Mr. HamiltonWhen does the Prime Minister or the Government intend to make a statement to the House about the investigations which have been under way for a considerable time and are currently under way by Scotland Yard into the inquiries instigated by the revelations in The Guardian some time ago? When will the House have an opportunity of debating the Franks Report, which is a linked problem? It is becoming in the nature of a major scandal that the House cannot express its views on an extremely important matter.
§ The Prime MinisterOn the particular matters to which the hon. Gentleman referred, of course there has been action following the police inquiries in the courts and sentences were passed on four people concerned, but all have given notice of appeal. The hon. Gentleman will therefore recognise that I must await 201 the outcome of those appeals before making any further statement to the House about the matter.
On the other matter concerning V and G, on which there was a leakage, I immediately instituted a tribunal of inquiry and the results are now well known to the House.
§ Mr. HamiltonWhat about the Franks Report?
§ The Prime MinisterMy right hon. Friend the Leader of the House is well aware of the position about the Franks Report and hopes to arrange for a debate in the next few weeks.
§ Mr. FowlerGoing a little further on that point, may I ask whether my right hon. Friend agrees that not all Government information requires the protection of the Official Secrets Act and that it is a matter of some urgency that we should come to a decision on the proposals in the Franks Report?
§ The Prime MinisterYes. We said that there would be a debate in the House before the Government announced any conclusions about it. I think that this is right.
§ Mr. Harold WilsonThe right hon. Gentleman referred to the Leader of the House concerning this matter. Does he recall that I raised this matter with his right hon. Friend last week and also asked when we might expect a statement on the report by the Computer Society and the Royal Statistical Society on the question of security under the census? Since that report has been with the Government for many months, may I ask when we can expect a statement?
§ The Prime MinisterI cannot give a precise date. I hope that it will be in the near future. We have been having discussions with the two societies concerned about the extent of publication of their reports, because they were responsible for them, and they gave various undertakings about the confidential nature of much of the material in them. Therefore, I think we are in their hands regarding publication of the documents.