§ Mr. BurstowTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if he will make it his policy to require all task forces and equivalent bodies sponsored by his Department to publish their working papers and minutes on the Internet. [58771]
§ Mr. Mudie[holding answer 9 November 1998]: The Department is committed to open government and abides by the principles laid down under the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
In any dealings with task forces and equivalent bodies we will impress on them our Department's commitment to openness and point out that proposed Freedom of Information legislation may identify and embrace these bodies.
Some of the larger task forces currently publish information on the Internet and any future bodies will be encouraged to consider an Internet site.