Senior Managemnt Appointments

Reed International PLC
Elsevier NV
21 June 2000


Issued on behalf of Reed International P.L.C. and Elsevier NV


12/00                                                             21 June 2000


Reed Elsevier announces senior management appointments

Reed Elsevier plc announced today that it has appointed Keith McGarr as its
new global chief technology officer. Mr McGarr will join the company in early
July and will be based at the US corporate headquarters in New York.

Mr McGarr was previously with Federal Express Corporation where he was
responsible for all IT network-based and distributed services and the design
of network architecture.  He has held various senior positions in network
computing, most recently as vice president network computing in the
Information Technology Division. The positions have all involved extensive
internet responsibilities.

Reed Elsevier also announced today the appointment of Jean Luc Augustin as the
new director of human resources of Reed Elsevier.  He will take up his
position in early July and will be based at the company's head offices in
London.   Mr Augustin joins Reed Elsevier from Novartis where he was vice
president human resources in the Pharmaceutical Division.  Prior to that he
was head of worldwide human resources in the Consumer Health Division.  Before
joining Novartis, Mr Augustin worked for General Electric holding a range of
senior positions including assignments at GE headquarters in the United
States. 

Jean Luc Augustin will replace Onno Laman Trip, currently Reed Elsevier's
director of human resources who has resigned with effect from the end of June
in order to pursue other business interests.

Both Mr Augustin and Mr McGarr will report to Crispin Davis, chief executive
officer of Reed Elsevier. 

Commenting on the appointments, Mr Davis said: 'We are extremely fortunate to
have secured the services Keith and Jean Luc: 'As the development of our
technology systems accelerates and we launch even more highly advanced online
products and services, Keith's broad technical expertise and knowledge of
network architecture will be vital.  He will play a key role in enabling us to
harness our existing technology resources and enter new and exciting areas as
Reed Elsevier moves into the next phase of its strategic development.'     

He added: Jean Luc's high level international experience in the field of
management development and succession planning will be invaluable in
identifying and nurturing the management talent to deliver our goals.'


For further information, contact:

Susanna Smart
Tel:        [phone]
Email       [e-mail]


Notes to Editors         

Reed Elsevier plc (www.reed-elsevier.com) is a world leading publisher and
information provider.  It is owned equally by Reed International P.L.C (NYSE:
RUK) and Elsevier NV (NYSE: ENL).  Operating in the scientific, legal and
business-to-business industry sectors, Reed Elsevier provides high value and
flexible information solutions to professional end users, with increasing
emphasis on the internet as a delivery method.   Building on its strong
position in key markets and its established brands and content, the company is
investing aggressively in the migration of its portfolio to electronic
delivery, with links to a wider range of content-related services and
transactional capabilities.