49.On 25 October 2007, the Prime Minister announced an independent review into the “30-year rule” (the rule under which most records are transferred to the National Archives and made available to the public by the time they are 30-years old). The Review published its findings in January 2009. On 10 June 2009 the Prime Minister announced the Government’s intention to change the relevant period from 30 to 20 years, and to enhance the protection for certain categories of information.
50.The Government response to the 30-Year Rule Review report was published in the form of a Command Paper (Cm 7822) on 25 February 2010.