"The government is not aware..."

"...that there are major problems in accessing scientific information." This is from the government response. House of Commons Science and Technology Committee Responses to the Committee's Tenth Report, Session 2003-04, Scientific Publications: Free for all? Fourteenth Report of Session 2003-04 HC 1400 London: The Stationery Office 2004
I shall tell our researchers this as I go around the medical school and the universities. I'm sure they will be reassured to know that their difficulties are imaginary.
It's an understatement to say that the government response is very disappointing, even if one started from a properly pessimistic point of view. It's questionable (and the Committee does question in its prefatory remarks) how far it represents a government view: while there are any number of government departments listed as having contributed to the response, it's hard to see the handwriting of any elected politicians in the document. Equally it makes a nonsense of the notion of joined-up government, of which we have heard so much. The preface also points out how the JISC's advice has been watered down or ignored.
Particularly short-sighted are the refusal to give a national lead on institutional repositories and the blanket refusal to take up the issue of VAT on electronic publications
The Committee call on the government to reconsider it position; I shall be writing to my MP.