§ Mr. Stottasked the Minister for the Civil Service if he will make a statement on prices of the OFFICIAL REPORT and other HMSO publications.
§ Mr. Charles R. MorrisHANSARD prices were last increased in January 1974 after three years during which they had remained unchanged. Production costs and overheads have continued to rise and it is now necessary to increase the price of the daily edition from 20p to 22p and the weekly edition from 55p to 60p. There will be corresponding increases in the prices of indexes, Standing Committee debates, bound volumes and subscription rates. The scale of charges for reprints of Members' speeches appearing in the OFFICIAL REPORT will also be raised. All the revised prices will come into effect in January 1975 when Parliament resumes after the Christmas Adjournment.
These price increases are part of a general increase in HMSO prices which have been agreed following consultation with the Price Commission. Despite these increases, the publication of HANSARD will still incur a substantial financial loss.