§ Mr. Fieldasked the Minister for the Civil Service, pursuant to the reply of 18 February, Official Report, c. 121, what proportion of Government Statistical Service publications is available in the Library of the House on the day of publication; and whether it would be possible for arrangements to be made for the Library of the House to receive documents in advance of publication on the same basis as journalists.
§ Mr. HayhoeI regret that the information sought in the first part of the question is not readily available either in the Library of the House or in Her Majesty's Stationery Office, which does not publish all Government statistical publications. The Government have no proposals to alter the long-standing arrangements under which Government publications may be made available to the press under embargo before being placed in the Library. I am, 457W however, requesting Her Majesty's Stationery Office to review its arrangements to ensure that the Library receives copies as soon as possible.