Introduction Section 5: Duty to publish information on outcome of negotiations between member States
22. Section 6 creates a duty for the Secretary of State to publish a report which includes a statement setting out what has been agreed by member States following the renegotiation of the UK's membership of the European Union requested by the UK Government.
23. The report is also required to include the UK Government's opinion on what has been agreed. Under subsections (2) and (3), the report must be published before the period of 10 weeks ending with the date of the referendum. There is no restriction on what the report can contain: as well as the content required by the duty, it can contain other material.
24. The duty leaves discretion as to the manner of publication, but the Secretary of State is obliged by subsection (4) to lay a copy of the published report before Parliament.