in certain cases, where a Select Committee might reasonably expect to receive a certain amount of detailed information, Departments may be able to provide a written memorandum in place of the report itself. If Departments can assist Committees in this way, it is generally desirable to do so.
iv.
Ministers are responsible for decisions about the release of Rayner scrutiny reports. This was confirmed by the Prime Minister's answer to a PQ on 22 February 1980:
'The reports referred to are prepared by
departmental officials for their Ministers. It is for the responsible Minister to decide how each should be handled'.
(Official Report, Vol. 979, Col. 351 WA.)
The general principle is that reports should be released unless their content or classification preclude it.
v)
Departments should always seek the views of Ministers before refusing a request from a Select Committee for a particular report, since the Minister personally might be called on to defend the decision to the Committee or, indeed, to the House as a whole.
Documents Relating to the Internal Administration of Government
The Procedure Committee recommended that:
42.
"Select committees should regard any refusal by government departments to provide information relating to departmental or interdepartmental organisation - unless fully explained and justified to their satisfaction - as a matter of
serious concern which should be brought to the attention of the House.
A considerable amount of information about the internal distribution of business is already available in published form (eg in the Civil Service Year Book) and the normal presumption should be that more detailed information about Department's organisational structure, such as directories and organisation charts, should be provided to Committees if it is requested. Where a description of duties of a sensitive nature necessitates the revelation of classified information, the considerations in paragraphs 48-51 apply.
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