British Official Publications
| Parliamentary Publications | Sessional Papers | Indexes |
| Non-Parliamentary Publications | Official Publications
not published by The Stationery Office | |
| Other indexes and guides | Databases & Websites |
Parliamentary Publications
The Library has a large collection of printed Parliamentary Papers dating back to the Parliamentary Session 1963/64. They are shelved as a separate collection on A Floor Blue Zone. This collection also includes a number of selected papers from previous sessions. Most of these are not listed in the Library catalogue, however if the Library has purchased extra copies of important Papers then these are catalogued and are findable by title etc. In order to trace references use the HMSO/TSO catalogues listed below or The Index to Parliamentary Papers, one of the Library's networked CD-ROM databases which covers the period 1801-1997. This is often the easiest way to search for Sessional Papers or modern Parliamentary Papers by subject or title.
The collection is arranged by number within five sequences:
- House of Lords Papers & Bills (separated from 1987/88)
- House of Commons Bills
- House of Commons Papers
- Command Papers
Material within the first four of these sequences is shelved according to year and number, e.g.
- 1971-72 (40) Standing Orders of the House of Lords 1972
- 1972-73 [1] British Shipbuilders Bill
- 1976-77 566 Medical Research Council Annual Report 1976/77
- 1995-96 115 Scott report
Command papers are shelved by series and number. The prefix, or lack of a prefix, denotes the series:
- 1- 4222 1833-1868/69
- C.1- C.9550 1870-1899
- Cd.1- Cd.9239 1900-1918
- Cmd.1- Cmd.9889 1919-1955/56
- Cm.1- continuing 1986/87 continuing
Sessional Papers
The Library has acquired a complete set of the Sessional Papers of the House of Commons to supplement the main collection. This includes House of Commons Bills, House of Commons Papers and Command Papers. These date back to the early 18th century and are in microtext formats. They are shelved in the Microreading Area on A Floor near to the Parliamentary Publications.
The Sessional Papers are arranged in Sessional Paper order: by date, volume and first page within that volume, until 1979/80. This reflects the arrangement within the House of Commons Library, e.g.:
1975/76 xxxix, 545 Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis: Report for the year 1975. [cmnd.6496]
(This report appears in the 39th volume of papers for 1975/76, beginning on page 545. The Command Papers reference is disregarded.)
Sessional references can be found in the indexes listed below.
Since 1980 Sessional Papers have followed the same conventions as adopted in arranging our printed collection. They are arranged by Command Paper number, House of Commons Paper number, etc. within the session. e.g., 1995/96 124 N.E.R.C. accounts 1994-95.
Indexes
There are two types of printed index:
- to the printed collection of Parliamentary Papers (giving the Command Paper number, House of Lords Bill reference, etc.)
- to the microfiche collection of House of Commons Sessional Papers
Parliamentary Publications Collection
- Government Publications: annual 1961-1988 (plus reprinted cumulative indexes from 1894)
- Government Publications: monthly and yearly volumes
- Government Publications: daily list
All shelved at 2JHea (A Floor Red Zone)
The Daily List can also be found on the TSO website.
These indexes provide the appropriate paper number and also list Non-Parliamentary material (see below). Parliamentary publications can be distinguished from Non-Parliamentary by the ISBN which carries the prefix 0-10.
Indexes of the House of Commons Sessional Papers
These are two sets indexing the 19th century papers:
Subject Catalogue of the House of Commons Parliamentary Papers, 1801-1900
General Index to British Parliamentary Papers, 1801-1899
Sessional indexes continue with:
Parliamentary Papers General Index: 1900-1949, 1950-1958/59, 1959/60-1968/69, then annual.
All shelved at 2JHea (A Floor Red Zone)
Non-Parliamentary Publications
The Library purchases Non-Parliamentary publications selectively. These HMSO/TSO publications do not fit into the four categories of Parliamentary Papers listed above. They are listed in the Library catalogue. The catalogue headings most used are those of the issuing departments. The published catalogues above are a useful source of these headings.
Official Publications [Non-TSO]
More and more official material is being published by publishers other than TSO. Departments sometimes act as their own publishers, others use commercial publishers and agencies. In all these cases where the Library holds copies they are recorded on the Library catalogue.
You can use the following to help track down references to this information:
Catalogue of British Official Publications Not Published by HMSO 2JHea, published bi-monthly with annual cumulations
Search the UKOP (United Kingdom Official Publications) database by keyword
Other Indexes and Guides
- British Government Publications. Index to Chairmen of Committees 2JHea
- Numerical finding list of British Command Papers 1833-1961 2JHea
- House of Commons Weekly Information Bulletin, shelved with Hansard and also available from the House of Commons
- House of Commons Sessional Information Digest, shelved with Hansard and also available from the House of Commons
Databases & Websites
- BOPCRIS - British Official Publications Collaborative Reader Information Service - Bibliographic database 1688-1983
- HMSO - Her Majesty's Stationery Office
- Houses of Parliament
- TSO - The Stationery Office
- ukonline.gov.uk - Government Information Service
- UKOP - United Kingdom Official Publications - searchable database