Edmond Campbell, Senior Staff Reporter

SEATED SOUTH of the Speaker's chair in a gallery reserved for Hansard writers, her fingers write proficiently as she demonstrates her stenographic craft, recording valuable parliamentary history.

It's a job she has done for the last 23 years in Gordon House, and extensive experience in the profession has made her a stickler for precision.

Miriam Allerdice, chief Hansard writer, and her team of stenographers play a pivotal role in facilitating the smooth functioning of the legislature, by providing the records of parliamentary sittings and committee meetings in a timely manner.

The new parliamentary year begins on April 7, with the annual ceremonial opening of Parliament, marked by the presentation of the Throne Speech by Governor General Patrick Allen.

Allerdice says her team is gearing up for the busiest period of the legislative year when the budget debate gets under way later this month, followed by the sectoral debate.

Often seen but not heard, Hansard writers capture every audible comment from the floor of Parliament during sittings of the Upper and Lower Houses, or when committees are at work.

With 20 years experience as a legislator, Leader of Opposition Business in the Senate A.J. Nicholson knows the importance of Hansard.

The long wait

Senator Nicholson, who first entered the Upper House in 1989, tells The Sunday Gleaner that there was a time when senators or members of the House had to wait weeks to get transcripts of debates.

However, he says this has changed and the level of efficiency is now commendable. "Now, within hours, whenever I telephone the clerk to the Houses of Parliament for any transcript, within a day, at most, I am able to get those notes that they have taken of what was said in the Parliament."

Hansard is the official verbatim record of parliamentary proceedings, such as debates or committee deliberations. It dates back to the 17th century, when Luke and his son Thomas Hansard bought the contract for recording debates in the British Parliament from William Corbett. In 1829 he put his name on the report - hence the name Hansard became synonymous with the written notes of Parliament.

It is widely accepted that Parliament is not a Sunday school and at times debates are intense, and when tempers flare insults are hurled across the floor of Parliament.

"Our duty is to record everything that is said in there, so, as long as you hear what is said you have to record it," Allerdice says, acknowledging that derogatory sotto voce (in an undertone) comments are captured and noted in Hansard.

Carl Bryan, the lone male stenographer in Parliament and arguably in the island, started working at Gordon House in 1996, his first job.

Bryan has no hang-ups about being the only male stenographer locally, adding that he was comfortable with his job except for one drawback - inadequate compensation.

However, this does not deter him from going the extra mile to ensure that the Hansard team remains diligent in assisting members of the legislature.

Prior to the early 1980s, the Services Commission reportedly assigned stenographers to the House to write for the sittings. However, in 1982 Parliament established a pool of Hansard writers. In the early years, manual machines were used, making the task arduous. "You write and you come back to your typewriter as it was back then, and word for word manually reproduce those notes," Allerdice explains.

The technology evolved, and 27 years later Parliament's Hansard writers now use computerised automatic transcription technology. This generates a faster production of notes when the memory card is inserted into a computer and produces a transcript.

There are 10 Hansard writers servicing more than 20 active committees, in addition to the sittings of the House and the Senate.

One of the youngest Hansard team members, Kiva-Lou Maloney Samuels, describes her job as challenging, but admits that each session she writes provides a learning experience on government's policy framework.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com