§ Mr. Thompsonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what measures are being taken to preserve the records of the burgh and county councils after local government reorganisation in May 1975.
§ Mr. William RossThe Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 places upon local authorities the duty of providing for the safe keeping of records in their custody. The Act provides for flexible arrangements enabling local authorities to maintain their own archives of non-current records or to transmit such records to the Keeper of the Records of Scotland. In anticipation of local government reorganisation a survey of historical records in local authority custody was carried out between 1969 and 1972 under the direction of the Keeper of the Records of Scotland and a similar survey of modern records is being carried out at present. My Department and the Keeper are encouraging local authorities to make full use of the powers available to them under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 and already several authorities have appointed professional archivists or have indicated their intention to do so.