Directorate Change

Reed Elsevier PLC
09 April 2003


                                  NEWS RELEASE


           Issued on behalf of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV


                                                                     9April 2003


       Annual General Meetings of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV
                               Board Appointments


Reed Elsevier announced today that the appointment of four new directors to the
Boards of Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV was approved by shareholders at
the Annual General Meetings held respectively on 8 and 9 April 2003.  They have
also been appointed directors of Reed Elsevier Group plc.

Patrick Tierney has been appointed an executive director.  He joined Reed
Elsevier in January 2003 as chief executive officer of the global education
business.  Previously, Mr Tierney was with The Thomson Corporation, serving as
chief executive officer of Thomson Financial.

Mark Elliott, Cese van Lede and David Reid have all been appointed non-executive
directors.  Mark Elliot is the general manager, IBM Europe/Middle East/Africa.
Cese van Lede is currently chairman of the Board of Akzo Nobel, from which he is
due to retire in May 2003, when he will be proposed for election to the
supervisory board of Akzo Nobel.  David Reid is deputy chairman of Tesco PLC and
will be taking over as chairman of Tesco PLC in April 2004.

At the Annual General Meetings, Roelof Nelissen and Steven Perrick retired from
the Boards.

Messrs Tierney, Elliott, van Lede and Reid have no details to disclose under
paragraph 6.F.2(b) to (g) of the Listing Rules.


For media enquiries contact:

Catherine May, Reed Elsevier, tel [phone]


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