§ 13. Mr. CabornTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to make a statement on his proposals for the reform of the Official Secrets Acts.
§ Mr. HurdI hope, as already stated, to lay before Parliament next month a White Paper setting out the Government's proposals for the reform of section 2 of the Official Secrets Act 1911.
§ Mr. CabornCan the Home Secretary give precise details of the timetable? Reform has been promised for eight or nine years. He was party to the punishing of his own Back Benchers some weeks ago, and precisely laid out on BBC radio some days after that what the White Paper would contain. Can he set out a timetable for the Bill after the White Paper and what consultations are likely?
§ Mr. HurdThe hon. Gentleman has got the history wrong. We restarted work on this in April of last year. I said, I think for the first time in December last year when my hon. Friend's Bill was debated, that we intended to lay before Parliament next month a White Paper. That is still our intention.