§ Mr. LansleyTo ask the Secretary of State for Scotland how many press releases were issued in(a) 1997, (b) 1998, (c) 1999 and (d) this year to date; and what the total cost of the production and issuing of these press releases was in each year. [132747]
§ Dr. ReidThe Scottish Office issued 2,141 press releases in 1997 and 2,757 in 1998. Between 1 January 1999 and 30 June 1999, the Scottish Office issued 1,397 press releases. The Scotland Office was established in its present form on 1 July 1999. Between 1 July and 31 December 1999 the Department issued 98 press releases and has issued a further 171 this year.
Exact information on the total cost of the production and issuing of press releases could only be obtained at disproportionate cost, though from the quantitative figures above the total cost has already decreased considerably.