Colonel Clarkeasked the Financial Secretary to the Treasury why the Navy List, containing both the Active List and the Retired List could be bought in 1938 for 4s. whereas today the Active List costs 25s. and the Retired List 12s. 6d.
§ Mr. Boyd-CarpenterThe difference in price is due to three factors: the increased size of the Lists, the increased production costs, and a necessary change of practice affecting the Active List.
Up to 1939, official and sale copies were printed together as a single edition at a low average cost per copy. The official and sale copies of the Retired List are still printed as a single edition; but, for security reasons, the post-war sale edition of the Active List is prepared in a different form from the official copies and is printed from separate type; the edition is small and a relatively high price is unavoidable. The price of 25s. does not, in fact, cover the cost of production.