Subjects include: the famine in Ethiopia; the miners’ strike; the bombing of the Grand Hotel, Brighton [Sussex]; the prosecution of the Ministry of Defence official Clive Ponting under the Official Secrets Act after he sent documents on the sinking of the Argentine warship General Belgrano during the Falklands War; South African opposition leaders seeking sanctuary in the British consulate, Durban; the banning of Martin Galvin, Publicity Director of NORAID [Irish Northern Aid Committee] from Northern Ireland; alleged breaches in the security services; adding VAT to food; rate capping of local authorities; an inquiry into the siege of the Libyan embassy; provision for war widows to attend events marking the 40th anniversary of the Normandy landings, France; investigations into the case of Michael Bettaney [convicted of passing sensitive documents to the Soviet embassy]; suggested names for the position of one of Britain’s Commissioners to the European Economic Community; Britain’s budget contributions to the EEC.

Other correspondents include Timothy Flesher, Private Secretary to Thatcher.