§ Mr. Gouldasked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if, in respect of the statistics kept and published by his Department, he will publish in the Official Report any changes since 1979 in (a) the statistical series which are published, including those which have been introduced and those which have been dropped, (b) the basis on which any elements in the statistics are estimated, calculated or presented, (c) the periods over which, and the dates on which the series are collected or published and (d) any other respects in the ways in which the statistics are collected, recorded, presented, evaluated or published; and if he will explain the reasons for any such changes.
§ Mr. Chris PattenThe only regular series of statistics kept and published by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office relate to British overseas aid. Details of commitments and disbursements of aid by type, purpose and geographical distribution are contained in the annual publication "British Aid Statistics", normally published in July or August, and in which most tables provide a series for five years.
630WThe layout of the publication was thoroughly reviewed for the 1983 edition in order to simplify the presentation and increase the amount of detailed information available. The only series dropped as a result of the review related to the receipt of interest due on official loans, other than those from the Commonwealth Development Corporation.
Minor changes in the basis of compilation, presentation and publication of the statistical series are made from time to time in response to the Government's requirements for statistical information, to conform with changes in internationally agreed definitions and classifications of aid, to comply with international reporting requirements, changes in the administrative systems on which some series are based, the development of new statistical techniques and technological developments affecting the compilation and dissemination of statistical data.
When such changes are made they are fully explained in the introduction to "British Aid Statistics".