HANSARD is used to refer to the unit of the Department of Parliamentary Services that publishes the printed record.

Hansard (the Official Report) is the edited verbatim report of proceedings of and its committees for both the House of Commons and the House of Lords in this case county assembly.

Hansard outlines all debates taking place in the house, capturing the contribution of every member — questions, responses and debate in the house.

It means that Hansard records nearly everything that is said, but without the non-verbal (‘um’s and the ‘ah’s) the false starts, the slips of the tongue and the little faults of grammar that can make a fully verbatim transcript so frustrating to read.

Our Work:

• Ensuring timely and accurate transcription.
• Undertaking independent verbatim reporting of Parliamentary proceedings and those of relevant committees/functions within or outside Parliament.
• Assisting in drafting duty schedules for Hansard Reporters.
• Preparing transcripts for editing.
• Sorting, checking transcripts from junior officers and amending as necessary.
• Assisting in classification, custody, archiving, retrieval and cross-checking of documents against references.
• Reporting: Recording, translation, and transcribing.
• Editing: Checking transcripts to correct errors, by amending, deleting or adding information.
• Documentation: Organizing information for orderly storage and retrieval by sorting, classification, and indexing.
• Research: Search for fresh information/facts by consulting appropriate sources. We have to check facts and dates, confirm the names of individuals and organizations, and verify quotations. We have to reflect the procedures that are being followed and to record the exact decisions made, in line with the official Journal.