Page:Lifecycle of Parliamentary Documents.pdf/97

 United Kingdom Clare Feikert-Ahalt Senior Foreign Law Specialist

SUMMARY

A variety of laws and conventions govern the lifecycle of parliamentary documents in the United Kingdom (UK). There is a wide range of parliamentary documents that have different procedures that attach to them. The key bodies involved in the production, publishing and preservation of these documents include the Vote Office, the Parliamentary Archives and the British Library.

The Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office, who is also the Queen’s Printer, is an official who operates from within the National Archives and is responsible for a wide range of duties, including setting standards and the overseeing the publication of legislation, statutory notices, and parliamentary papers.

The Parliamentary Archives is the custodian of publications of Parliament. It works to preserve the digital and paper records of Parliament. In addition, the British Library receives publications through the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003, which requires publishers to deposit materials in the British Library. Parliament is not excused from this duty and must deposit print copies and, where an agreement is in place, electronic copies of its papers. Moreover, the National Archives is both the official publisher and the official archive for the UK. It is responsible for ensuring the records of Parliament are safeguarded through their lifecycle and remain accessible, regardless of format, for future generations. These agencies have been actively engaged in ensuring that digital records are not only preserved, but also archived in a form that is accessible to future generations.

I. Overview

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) is the collective name of four countries—England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The four separate countries were united under a single Parliament in London through a series of Acts of Union. The UK has undergone a period of devolution with the creation of a Scottish Parliament, a National Assembly in Wales, and an Assembly in Northern Ireland. The UK has a bicameral parliament consisting of the House of Lords (the upper house composed of both hereditary and life peers ) and the House of Commons (the elected lower house).