official publications

GOV.UK: Publications

Database of UK official publications provided on the government website, GOV.UK. Includes research papers, statistics, consultation documents, act papers (documents laid before Parliament under the authority of acts of Parliament), administrative decisions (e.g. Intellectual Property Office decisions), policy papers, official guidance, impact assessments, Freedom of Information releases, some treaties and various other government publications. Some types of publication are only available from around 2010 onwards, but some are available as far back as the 1980s - and earlier.

Parliamentary Research Publications

This page, on the UK Parliament website, provides free access to publications produced by the House of Commons and House of Lords libraries. There are Research Briefings providing detailed introductions to a range of topics available back to 1996. There are also Business Briefings providing impartial summaries and analyses of events and situations relevant to current parliamentary interest.

GOV.UK

GOV.UK is the official UK government website, replacing the Directgov and Business Link sites. Individual government departments' websites have all been (or will be) merged into GOV.UK. The site provides policy information and other departmental materials. There is an extensive Publications database, containing consultation documents, treaties, official guidance, annual reports, statistics and more. The site also includes information and online services for individuals and businesses, on a wide range of topics.

Communities and Local Government

The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) was created in 2006 from the former Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (ODPM). Its website has sections for the following areas of departmental responsibility: housing; local government; communties and neighbourhoods; fire and emergencies; regeneration and economic growth; planning, building and the environment. Documents available on the site include consultation papers, research papers, reports, legislation, statistics and press releases.

Law Commission of Canada

Website of the Law Commission of Canada, an independent federal agency set up in 1997 to advise Parliament on reforming the laws of Canada. The Commission lost its funding in 2006, but its website has been archived by Library and Archives Canada. Reports produced while the Commission was active are still available in the Resources section of the site, under the heading “Reading Room”. Information about the work of the Commission is also provided.

Government of Canada

Official website of the Canadian Government. Includes an alphabetical directory of federal government websites and a set of links to provincial and territorial government sites. The Publications and Reports page is a portal to Canadian government publications and information about them. The site is available in French or English.

Parliament of Australia

The Australian Parliament website has information from the Senate, the House of Representatives and the Parliamentary Library. The documents available include bills, parliamentary debates, standing and sessional orders and a full list of members of both houses. The Information and Research section contains historical lists of members of parliament, governors and prime ministers; election results; factsheets; and procedural guides. The Publications page includes, among other things, an index to parliamentary papers from 1992 onwards.

USA.gov

USA.gov is the main portal to US federal, state and tribal government information on the web. It offers an A-Z of government departments (with links), a directory of web-based government services and contact details for all sorts of government bodies. The Explore Topics section includes a Public Safety and Law page with links to courts and legislatures and a Reference and General Government page with links to official publications, statistics, a glossary of federal government abbreviations, laws and other materials.

United States House of Representatives

The website of the US House of Representatives includes schedules of debates and committee hearings, information about votes and current bills and a directory of Representatives. The full text of current and older bills can be accessed via links to the Library of Congress’s Thomas website. The United States Code, which is produced by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the House, is also available, together with links to individual public laws (1995 to date and 1789 to 1875).

FindLaw Cases and Codes

Findlaw is a US website owned by Thomson Reuters. Its Cases and Codes section provides free access to federal case law, the US Constitution and the US Code (a compilation of federal laws in force). State constitutions, state case law and some state codes are also available, together with materials such as bills and city ordinances. The case law files typically go back to the 1990s, but the US Supreme Court opinions go back to 1893.

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