TNA Annual Report 2012-13

In the light of objections from several parties in Canada to LAC entering into partnerships to make records more widely available online I had to cheer when I read the pride with which the UK National Archives includes mention of similar arrangements in its latest annual report

"There is worldwide interest in our records, particularly those collections that are rich in individual names and therefore invaluable for family researchers. One of the ways we meet this interest is through licensing commercial organisations to digitise our records and put them online. This does not cost the UK taxpayer and any record digitised in this way can still be seen for free at Kew, but it generates much-needed income for The National Archives and creates value for the wider economy. It also represents a valuable export market. Where UK content is used in global online genealogical research, around 80% of this originates from The National Archives."

TNA continues to deliver. They also report in a straightforward manner:

Especially worth noting is that 98.7% of original documents are delivered to on-site users within one hour