§ Mr. Meacherasked the Lord Privy Seal what are the functions of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office information department; and how many people it employs.
§ Mr. Humphrey AtkinsInformation department co-ordinates the Government's official information effort overseas—including the overseas services of the Central Office of Information—has financial responsibility for the overseas information programme and maintains liaison with the BBC external Services and the British Overseas Trade Board. It also supervises sponsored visits to the United Kingdom, in co-operation with the Central Office of Information, and the work of the Wiston House conference centre. The Department provides regular guidance and background briefing of Her Majesty's missions abroad on matters of general concern affecting Government policies.
The Department has 79 members.
§ Mr. Meacherasked the Lord Privy Seal how many of the current staff of the information department in his Department previously worked for the information research department.
§ Mr. Humphrey Atkins27 members of the present information department have served in the former information reseach department at some stage in their careers.
§ Mr. Meacherasked the Lord Privy Seal if he will list all documents distributed by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office information department over the last 12 months.
§ Mr. Humphrey AtkinsApart from a wide range of material prepared for our posts abroad for general briefing purposes, the following 77 background briefs were issued in 1981
- Soviet Attitude to Muslim Believers
- Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (revised)
- China's Economic and Political Course
- Summit Conferences of the Arab League
- Soviet Foreign Trade: 1979–80
136 - Poland: A Chronology, October-December 1980
- Afghanistan: Chronology of Events, September-December 1980
- Soviet and Western Attitudes to Defence and Disarmament
- The Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC)
- Ethnic and Religious Minorities of Iran
- Soviet Fishing Around Africa
- Life Today in Cambodia
- Libyan Relations with Sub-Saharan Africa
- Afghanistan Report
- The Church in Cuba
- Non-Aligned Foreign Ministers' Meeting
- Aid to the Developing World
- Namibia (South West Africa) Independence Proposals Chronology: September 1980—March 1981
- National Feeling and Dissent in Estonia
- Soviet Treatment of Two Muslim Minorities
- Afghanistan—The Refugees
- Afghanistan: Further Responses to the Soviet Intervention
- The Economic Community of West African States
- Soviet Activities in Africa
- China's National Minorities
- Economic Retrenchment in China
- Belize: Background to Independence
- The Two Yemens: Dialogue or Discord?
- Background to the Troubles in E1 Salvador
- Poland: A Chronology, January-March 1981
- Palestine Liberation Organisation (revised)
- Afghanistan: Chronology of Events, January-March 1981
- Soviet Party Congress
- Privilege in the Soviet Union
- World Food Supplies
- Life Today in Laos
- Poland: A Chronology, April-May 1981
- The Middle East Problem: Background and Chronology, August 1980-June 1981
- Economic Reform and the Private Sector in the USSR and Eastern Europe
- Treatment of Cuban Political Prisoners
- Organisation of African Unity
- Vietnam's Commitment to Revolution
- Afghanistan Report
- The IMF and New Loan Demands
- The Berlin Wall—20 Years After
- China's Economy and Foreign Trade in 1980
- Developments in Burma
- Afghanistan: Further Responses to the Soviet Intervention
- Afghanistan: Trade Union Movement
- Afghanistan: Agrarian Policy
- Afghanistan Chronology: April-June 1981
- Iran: The Internal Power Struggle
- South Africa: Black Nationalist Organisations
- Belize: Background to Independence (revised)
- The Principle Events in Iran Since the Islamic Revolution: Chronology: November 1980–July 1981
- The Neutron Weapon
- Polish Party Congress Confirms Kania's 'Socialist Renewal'
- Poland: A Chronology, June-July 1981
- The Principal Events Concerning Cambodia since the Communist Seizure of Power; Chronology: April 1975–4 September 1981
- Communication Resources and the Free Flow of Information Namibia (South West Africa) Independence Proposals Chronology: March 1981–September 1981
- Cultural Developments in China
- Soviet Foreign Trade 1980–81
- World Energy Prospects
- Afghanistan Report
- Afghanistan: Chronology of Events, July-September 1981
- Poland: A Chronology, August-September 1981
- Solidarity Congress Rejects Confrontation
- Namibia: Search for a Settlement
- Chinese Policy on Religion
- Problems in Soviet Society
- Dissent in the USSR
- Afghanistan and the UN General Assembly
- Afghanistan Report
- The Soviet Economy 1980–81
137 - Soviet Policy in the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula
- Third United Nations Conference on the Law of the Sea (revised)
§ Mr. Meacherasked the Lord Privy Seal how many journalists receive material produced by the information department of his Department.
§ Mr. Humphrey AtkinsAny journalist may obtain information department's background briefs through the Foreign and Commonwealth Office news department. 84 journalists have asked to receive supplies of these papers on a regular basis, 14 of whom represent newspapers overseas.