Cambridge, United Kingdom., January 20th, 2009 - ProQuest is pleased to announce that the House of Commons Parliamentary Papers will be made available to the members of two consortia in Japan at a greatly reduced fee. This agreement was made possible by an alliance with the National Institute of Informatics (NII), the Japan Association of National University Libraries (JANUL) and Private and Public University Libraries Consortium (PULC). The House of Commons Parliamentary Papers are vital to the historical record of Britain, its former Colonies and the wider world. They are among the richest and most detailed primary sources for the history of the past two centuries, and are fundamental to an understanding of current legislation, policymaking and the political environment.

"This agreement further demonstrates ProQuest's commitment to education and to accelerating the connection between people and essential research material," said Dan Burnstone, Vice President, Arts and Humanities publishing. "We are pleased to extend our partnership with this pioneering Japanese Consortium for the Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences to help users discover and access resources of interest and incorporate them into research and learning."

This agreement is the first of its kind for the new Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences consortium in Japan and provides a much-needed boost to researchers in these subject areas. Many researchers in Japan specialising in Europe and the United Kingdom will find the resources invaluable, while researchers looking at the history of Japan and Asia will also find a wealth of relevant documents. The House of Commons Parliamentary Papers will be hosted by the National Institute of Informatics. Universities are invited to license this content individually for a greatly reduced fee.

House of Commons Parliamentary Papers covers a period that saw such events as the wars in the Falkland Islands and Iraq, the return of Hong Kong to China, the formation of the European Union and end of apartheid in South Africa. Users can trace the progress of arms control and energy conservation and find materials relating to topics ranging from AIDs to the independence of Zimbabwe. House of Commons Parliamentary Papers includes thousands of sessional papers, covering the period 1801 to 2004 in this collection. The collection delivers pages, images and searchable full text for each parliamentary paper, along with detailed indexing.

The House of Commons Parliamentary Papers is a comprehensive collection, including papers issued by the House of Commons from 1801-2004 in all formats: Bills, Reports of Committees, Reports of Commissioners, Accounts and Papers and Command Papers.

National Institute of Informatics (NII): Japan’s only general academic research institutions seeking to create value in the new discipline of informatics and promoting the Cyber Science Infrastructure for dissemination of academic information

Japan Association of National University Libraries (JANUL): a membership organisation comprising libraries of national universities in Japan, the University of the Air library, library facilities of four inter-university research institutes, totalling 92 libraries and library facilities

Private and Public University Libraries Consortium (PULC): a membership organisation of public and private university libraries in Japan

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More than a content provider or aggregator, ProQuest is an information partner, creating indispensable research solutions that connect people and information. Through innovative, user-centered discovery technology, ProQuest offers billions of pages of global content that includes historical newspapers, dissertations, and uniquely relevant resources for researchers of any age and sophistication—including content not likely to be digitized by others. Inspired by its customers and their end users, ProQuest is working toward a future that blends information accessibility with community to further enhance learning and encourage lifelong enrichment.

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