§ MR. BOORD (Greenwich)asked the Postmaster General, Under what arrangement time signals are supplied by the Astronomer Royal from Greenwich; at what expense to his Department; and whether such arrangement is of a permanent character; and, what charges are made to the public for the supply of time signals; and what has been the amount annually received in respect of them by the Post Office since the arrangement was commenced?
§ THE POSTMASTER GENERAL (Mr. RAIKES) (Cambridge University)In reply to the hon. Member, I have to state that the Astronomer Royal does not himself supply time signals to the public. What he does is to supply signals to the Post Office by means of wires and apparatus provided by the Department. The Post Office distributes the signals to various Public Bodies and private persons throughout the Kingdom, on the terms and conditions set forth at page 311 of the Post Office Guide. The minimum charge in London is £15, and in the country £12. The gross annual revenue at present is about £1,300; and the amount has varied from about £230 to about £1,400 a-year since the telegraphs were transferred to the State. The arrangement with the Astronomer Royal may, I think, be regarded as permanent.