I.—B

Session 11. 1906. NEW ZEALAND.

JOINT REPORTING DEBATES AND PRINTING COMMITTEE. REPORT AS TO EXPEDITING THE PUBLICATION OF "HANSARD."

Report brought up 22nd October, 1906, and ordered to be printed.

The Joint Eeporting Debates and Printing Committee, to whom was referred the question of expediting the publication of Hansard, have the honour to report that they have taken thereon the evidence of the Hansard Supervisor, the Chief Hansard Reporter, the Government Printer, and the Chief Postmaster of Wellington. They are of opinion that an up-to-date publication of Hansard depends, in the first place, upon the prompt return by members of the type-written reports of their speeches, but that with the co-operation of honourable members, with a reasonably quick distribution by the Post Office, and with improved machinery in the Government Printing Office, it is possible to expedite the publication of Hansard, especially as regards its issue to the public. At present instalments of Hansard are published twice a week, as a rule on Tuesdays and Fridays. There is, however, an interval between the dates on which such instalments are issued to members and to the public of Wellington, and this interval has varied from time to time. In the earlier part of the session it extended to seven days, but recently it has been reduced to two days. In more distant parts of the colony the period that has elapsed after the issue to honourable members has been proportionately greater. The evidence taken shows that the publication of No. II of Hansard may be said to constitute a record for this session. This number, containing part of the proceedings of the Legislative Council of Wednesday, the 26th September, the whole of the proceedings of Thursday, the 27th September, and the proceedings of the House of Representatives for Wednesday the 26th and Thursday the 27t.h September, was issued to honourable members on Tuesday, the 2nd October, and was in the hands of the public of Wellington on Thursday, the 4th October. An examination of the dates mentioned shows that the proceedings of Thursday, the 27th September, reported in that number, were five days old when it was received by honourable members, and seven days old when it was delivered to the public of Wellington ; while the proceedings of Tuesday, the 26th September, were six days old when received by honourable members, and eight days old when delivered to the public in Wellington. . The Committee do not recommend any change at present as regards the issue of bi-weekly instalments of Hansard to honourable members, but they are of opinion that better results would be obtained, so far as the public are concerned, by issuing to the public a weekly number of Hansard instead of bi-weekly numbers as at present. The advantages to be derived from the proposed change would be that the work of the Government Printing Office and the work of the Post Office in connection with the publication of Hansard would be considerably lightened, while if the weekly number of Hansard were published on Tuesday, in time to catch the southern mail, and contained a report of the proceedings of Parliament up till the hour of 4 or 5 o'clock on the preceding Friday, the reports of Hansard would be more up to date than they have been hitherto. In order that this proposal could be successfully carried out, it would be necessary that the reports of members' speeches should be returned to the Hansard Supervisor not later than 1 o'clock on the Saturday preceding the day of publication. This would give to honourable members a period of at least twenty hours in which to correct the reports of speeches delivered by them on Friday afternoon, a period which seems ample for the purpose. The Committee are of opinion that it is desirable that a weekly number of Hansard, as above described, should be issued to the public instead of bi-weekly numbers as at present, and they recommend that the proposal should be tried as an experiment next session. The Committee are also of opinion that delay which may be avoided has occurred in the transmission and distribution of Hansard by the Post Office, and they recommend that the suggestions hereinafter mentioned,' made by the Chief Postmaster at Wellington, should be given effect to next session. It was stated by the Chief Postmaster that it would be of very great assistance in disposing of Hansards if the printer's distribution lists were subdivided into districts corresponding to the postal districts, and if to each Hansard were added the name of the postal district, of which there are seventeen in the colony. " The Hansard could," he says, "if this were done, be cleared out of the office in about half the time at present occupied."