Copy an A/437
EXECUTIVE BOARD
Monday, 27th January, 1941

Representation on Committees

1. Officers serving on Inter-departmental Committees or other committees dealing with public affairs, not being committees appointed by the Ministry of Information , are requested to report briefly the name of the Committee, the composition, the function or terms of reference, and the circumstances in which they came to serve, in writing to Mr. Wiltshire, Room 302, by Saturday February 1st. Reports should be made through heads of divisions and Controllers in the case of divisional staff.

2. It should be noted for the future that no one can represent the Ministry of Information on any external committee without the official authority of the Minister which in this, as in other official matters, is not delegated below Controllers (Office Circular No. 53, paragraph 3). Any invitation received semi-officially or personally must therefore be referred at least as high as a Controller before it can be accepted. The officer approving the nomination wall be responsible that the Ministry's representative has facilities for obtaining and is competent to represent the considered views of the Ministry and not merely a sectional interest.

3. All appointments of Ministry representatives to external committees should be notified by the officer approving the nomination to Mr. Wiltshire for inclusion in a standing committee list.

4. The Establishment Officer should be consulted or asked to advise on any invitation to appoint a Ministry representative to an external committee at some stage before the nomination is approved.

5. No officer below the rank of Controller may appoint a committee on behalf of the Ministry of Information, either an internal or external one.

6. These instructions do not apply to ad hoc meetings or conferences on particular matters except that

(a) an external one including another department should not be called without the authority of a Controller, and

(b) any Ministry of Information officer calling an internal one or invited to attend an external one should take particular care to acquaint himself with the views of all sides of the Ministry which are materially interested in the subject matter; otherwise the proceedings may be a waste of time.

24.1.41.