Branching out

I'd always planned for this blog to include Hansurdities from other parliaments, whether they be Canadian or whether they come from further afield. If, in trawling the Hansards for your own region, you encounter something bloggable, feel free to send it in to hansurdity@gmail.you.know.the.rest.

A few nights ago a friend contributed this ancient gem from the U.K. Parliament.

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Postage Stamp Adhesive
Lords Sitting, 12 July 1973

Lord Clifford of Chudleigh:

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, in view of the inconvenience and possible danger to health of licking stamps, they will encourage the Post Office to introduce some form of self-sticking stamps.

Lord Denham:

My Lords, this is a matter for the Post Office, but I am told that it has on several occasions sought medical opinion on this point and has consistently been advised that the practice of licking stamps entails little or no risk to health.

Lord Clifford of Chudleigh:

My Lords, while thanking the noble Lord for that reply, may I ask him whether he is aware that there is in existence a process whereby minute globules of plastic containing sticking stuff are put on the back of stamps, and if you press it between finger and thumb it automatically sticks? Would that not be more convenient, quite apart from the health hazard? No matter what the noble Lord has been informed, may I ask him whether it is not a fact that many of the virus and bacteriological diseases can be spread in this way, particularly hepatitis A and B—B being the Australian one and therefore the most obnoxious?

Lord Denham:

My Lords, it is quite possible to use a sponge instead of licking stamps; indeed, every post office provides one for the use of its customers. With regard to the convenience of the stamps. I understand that self-adhesive ones would cause a great deal more inconvenience. They would be very much more bulky to store and it would be rather more difficult to put a number of stamps on letters, because it would be necessary to peel off the adhesive backing. I understand that no major postal administration uses self-adhesive stamps. There have been such stamps issued in Tonga and Bhutan, but I understand that in both cases they were sold as philatelic curiosities rather than as a means of prepaying postage.