§ Mr. McMasterTo ask the Lord President of the Council what procedures hon. Members should follow to gain direct access to POLIS in their offices within the House.
§ Mr. MacGregorHon. Members wishing to have direct access to POLIS must already have a personal computer with modem and communications software installed in their office. The modern must be connected to a telephone line. They should apply to the Head of Computer and Technical Services Section, House of Commons Library, giving the speed and type of modem. She can then arrange for the necessary password to be assigned and for signing-on instructions to be issued to the Member.
As I informed the House on 8 July (Official Report. columns 727–30), the installation of a House-wide data network is under consideration. If this is approved, POLIS will be accessible through the new network rather than the telephone system.
§ Mr. McMasterTo ask the Lord President of the Council if he will take steps to ensure that hon. Members may have direct access to POLIS in their constituency offices and/or homes.
§ Mr. MacGregorHon. Members in possession of a personal computer with a modem and communications software can have direct access to POLIS from their constituency offices and/or homes through the telephone system. The only costs to Members are the telephone call charges: the cheapest method for those located outside the London telephone area is to have a contract with British Telecom for access to the packet switching system (PSS).