The Gazette is a superb source of professional news, information and gossip which is a ‘goody’ I eagerly await each week. Last year’s change in format is a great improvement. The news content remains invaluable.

Like the proverbial chocolate bar, however, it is shrinking at an alarming rate. Solicitors will continue to read and enjoy the Gazette while the cost is part of the professional subscription. But I wonder how many would otherwise pay £4.50 for the pleasure?

Trevor F Moore, Ibstock, Leicestershire

Slim pickings

I and others of my acquaintance have commented that the Gazette has been looking painfully thin over recent months. Is there any reason for this apart from a recent lack of job adverts from employment agencies?

I recall the legal update and case reports to be more extensive in the past.

Vicki Sales, Richmond, Surrey

Editor’s note: The pagination of the Gazette has indeed diminished, but I would like to take this opportunity to correct a common misconception. The Gazette is not paid for through the PC fee. We are run as a profit-making commercial product on a ratio of advertising/editorial which is typical of the business-to-business publishing sector. The Gazette was and remains profit-making, despite the sharp industry-wide fall in advertising. We remain therefore a net contributor to Law Society funds.

Research shows that the Gazette is read by 87% of solicitors every week, confirming the value that the profession places on its market-leading magazine. We trust that the economy will pick up soon and that our advertising revenues and editorial pagination will increase accordingly. In the meantime however, along with all other businesses, we need to manage our costs. This unfortunately means smaller issues. For those who are not already aware, the Gazette has considerably extended its coverage of the legal sector through its greatly improved website. This year has seen the launch of Daily News and blogs amid a plethora of web-only content, some of which – for example the Moving On and SDT pages – was previously accommodated in the print issue.