§ Mr. Newensasked the Attorney-General if the powers possessed by the Master of the Rolls under section 144A of the Law of Property Act 1922 to direct the transfer of manorial documents into the safekeeping of the Public Record Office or other publicly owned repository have been exercised in recent years to prevent the loss of export of such records; and if he regards this provision as adequate to ensure the preservation of vital archival material.
The Attorney-GeneralThe power of the Master of the Rolls under section 144A of the Law of Property Act 1922 to direct manorial documents to be transferred728W to record repositories is exercisable only when in his opinion the documents are not being properly preserved or when he is asked by the owners of the documents to make such a direction. There has been no case for the exercise of the power in recent years. However, rules made by the Master of the Rolls under section 144A require manorial documents to be kept and used under conditions suitable for their safe and proper preservation; prevent the export of such documents without the consent of the Master of the Rolls; and give the Historical Manuscripts Commission a supervisory role in locating and advising upon their care. So far as I am aware, the Act and rules make adequate provisions for the preservation of the documents to which they relate.
§ Mr. Newensasked the Attorney-General if the sale of archival material relating to the conduct of manorial courts at any time in the past is subject to the approval of the Master of the Rolls under the Law of Property Act 1922 or any other statute; and whether any contact was made with the vendor or purchasers of Warwick castle in 1978 about the future disposition of the Warwick castle records which come within this category.
The Attorney-GeneralThe Master of the Rolls has no power to prevent the sale of manorial documents, including the court rolls. However, by rules made under section 144A of the Law of Property Act 1922 every change in the ownership of manorial documents must be notified to the Historical Manuscripts Commission. These changes are recorded in a register, kept by the Commission, which is open to public inspection. The Commission also monitors relevant sources for information about the movements of manorial documents and draws the attention of vendors and prospective buyers to their obligations of care and safe custody. Both the vendor and the purchaser of the Warwick castle archives were made aware of these obligations before the sale took place.