Hansard

Hansard, the official report of the debates of both houses of the British Parliament. The name and publication format were subsequently adopted by other Commonwealth countries. It is so called after the Hansards, a family of printers who began working with Parliament in the late 18th century.

The Fifth Hansard series, dating from 1909, when the report became both official and verbatim, comprised more than 750 volumes for the Lords by the 21st century. The Sixth series, begun in 1980 for the Commons, had surpassed 600 volumes by that time. In total, more than 2,000 volumes had been published for the House since 1803. Remarks are typically published online within hours of their delivery by a member of Parliament, and print copies are made available the following morning. Hansard reporters do very light editing to correct obvious misstatements and enhance clarity, but care is taken not to alter the speaker’s meaning or intent. The reports of both houses are printed, and sold to the public, by the Stationery Office, which also issues a Weekly Hansard consisting of several daily parts. Printing is expressly sanctioned by both houses, for either, if it so desired, could withhold its proceedings from the public.

The connection between Parliament and the Hansard family was first established by Luke Hansard, who was born at Norwich on July 5, 1752. After an apprenticeship to a Norwich printer, Hansard became a compositor at the printing office of John Hughs, printer to the House of Commons, in Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London. In 1774 he was made a partner, and in 1800 he became the sole proprietor of the business. He printed the Journals of the House of Commons from 1774 until his death in London on October 29, 1828. He was known particularly for the speed and accuracy with which he printed parliamentary papers (a notable example being the presentation to William Pitt of proof sheets of the report of the secret committee on the French Revolution 24 hours after receipt of the draft) and he devised numerous expedients for reducing publication costs.

Luke Hansard had three sons and two daughters. The eldest son, Thomas Curson Hansard (1776-1833), after some years in his father’s office, took over another printing business in 1805 and in 1823 established the Paternoster Row press. He was the first printer, and later publisher, of the unofficial series of Parliamentary Debates inaugurated by William Cobbett in 1803. The two younger sons, James Hansard (1781-1849) and Luke Graves Hansard (1783-1841), continued the business of their father and were themselves succeeded by their respective sons, the business being carried on after 1847 by Henry Hansard (1820-1904), son of Luke Graves. In 1837 the firm was the defendant in the famous case of Stockdale v. Hansard, being charged with the publication of libelous statements in an official House of Commons report. Only after protracted litigation was the security of printers of government reports ultimately guaranteed by statute in 1840.