§ Mr. Malcolm BruceTo ask the Lord President of the Council what quantity of paper, excluding newspapers, in metric tonnes, has been used in the House of Commons within the last 12 months on(a) Members' stationery, 22W (b) the Vote Bundle, (c) the Official Report and (d) production of Bills and other legislative documents; if, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Leicester East (Mr. Vaz), Official Report, 4 April, column 68, he is now in a position to indicate what percentage of the paper is recycled, specifying percentages for each of the four sections; what percentage of each section identified is subsequently recycled; and if he will make a statement.
§ Sir Geoffrey HoweThe information requested is(a) 26 tonnes; (b) 168 tonnes; (c) 158 tonnes and (d) 43 tonnes. Recycled paper is not used for these categories because much of the material is of archival significance, and recycled paper of suitable archival quality is not currently obtainable. Buff envelopes, ruled writing paper, file covers, note books, index books, lavatory paper and waste paper sacks all contain at least 50 per cent. recycled material. All non-confidential waste paper from the House of Commons is collected by a contractor for recycling.