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casting. Under Films, a film production committee will be set up for consultations; catalogues of films suitable for discussion groups will be prepared, and agpossible,f two documentary films withagelated discussion material, will be produced. Under Press, questions of newsprint, obstacles to the freedom of information and technical needs, as well as the professional aspect of the Press, will be the subjects of direct discussion between the. Organisation and an expert Press and Publications Committee.
68. Public Relations.—We wish to point out here that communication is considered as a subject apart from public relations, for which separate resolu- tions were adopted by the Committee of Fifteen. (See paragraphs 132 -136)
3. THE BUDGET OF UNESCO
69. The preparation of the annual budget is the responsibility of the Director-General. His original estimates for 1948 totalled $8,473,530, an increase of nearly $791,000 over the approved figure for 1948. This increase was not in respect of any demands for additional staff or of any increase in programme activities. It was due almost entirely to the increased cost of living in Paris. This fact and its adverse effect upon the possibility of establishing a stable budgetary policy was a matter for serious consideration by the United Kingdom Delegation. The fact that a devaluation of the franc shortly before the opening of the Conference had enabled a reduction of some $200,000 to be made in the estimates did not lessen the danger of an increasingly inflated budget.
70. In the early stages of the Session, the Conference took a decision in principle, that the final budget should not exceed $8,000,000 and that, if possible, it should be even lower than that figure. After detailed consideration of the programme, the administration and the external relations policy of the Organisation by the appropriate Commissions, the Budget was submitted to the Budget Sub-Commission of ten members for examination and they began their work under the Conference instruction to reduce the total to a figure lower than $8,000,000.
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71. The United Kingdom Delegation, while it was entirely satisfied with the firm and workmanlike presentation of the Budget document, believed that many economies could be made. It therefore instructed the United. Kingdom representative, Dr. W. P. Alexander, to press for reductions wherever possible and particularly in the sections where centralised administrative costs were known to be abnormally high. The Budget Sub-Commission performed its task under very heavy pressure of work. Their recommendations were adopted with only minor amendments. A Budget for 1949 of $780,000 was 1,780,000 therefore finally approved, representing a reduction over the estimates of some $690,000 and leaving the Budget for 1949 only slightly in excess of that for 1948.
72. The relation of the Budget to the Programme and the distinction in the appropriations between administrative costs and programme costs, remain, and are likely to remain, matters of debate. It is possible to interpret the appropriations, incorrectly in our view, to show that nearly fifty per cent. of the total Budget is devoted to personnel and administration. We must point out that funds which are spent on personnel cannot be regarded wholly as administrative costs since the majority of the staff is engaged on programme duties.
We believe furthermore that the division of the appropriation into
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