This is the fourth annual issue of The Directory of Westminster and Whitehall, which began publication in 1994‐95. The work is a consumer’s guide to the United Kingdom Parliament and the Civil Service, providing key information on the work of the Palace of Westminster and the mandarins of Whitehall.
The first section of the work gives a considerable amount of “Who’s Who” type information on MPs, their Parliamentary staff and constituency offices, including contact names, addresses, telephone, fax, e‐mail and Web data. Additionally, there is peripheral information on MPs such as their published works, directorships and consultancies, their leisure interests and languages spoken (did you know that the Rt Hon David Blunkett is fluent in Esperanto?). The data in this section are particularly up to date, listing as it does Alun Michael as Secretary of State for Wales (this review was written in November 1998!).
The second part of the book guides readers through the intricacies of contacting government departments and related public bodies. Again, the full range of directory information is provided and, within each government department, civil servants are listed for each topic relevant to that department. Information is also presented on how to contact major “quangos” and executive agencies. This section is presented in a form which library users will find easy to access, being largely a simple alphabetic subject contact list. However, it should be noted that much of the information is in the form of advertisements which have been placed in the text by lobbying and pressure groups and the data have to be evaluated with this in mind. It can be neither comprehensive nor unbiased and only therefore provides contact and directory information.
The information contained in this book is obtainable elsewhere, but not in such a convenient, if expensive, form. BBC Vacher’s Guide to the New House of Commons, Parliament’s World, the PMS Parliamentary Companion and the Times Guide to the House of Commons all contain some of this information, but, as at the time of writing, this directory is most up to date and presents the data in a convenient form. The work is available as a large format paperback at £80, post or as a CD‐ROM at a price of £120. The best method of purchase may be to acquire both, which are sold at a combined price of £130. The publishers also provide the information on MPs as a database and with labels for mailing purposes. However, it should be noted that the Carlton Group’s Web‐site currently only provides further information on the 1997‐98 edition of the work!
