HC Deb 30 June 1873 vol 216 cc1551-2
MR. M'CLURE

asked the First Lord of the Treasury, How such Irish Railway Companies as may be disposed to avail themselves of the intimation to the effect that advances of money might be made by the State to Irish Railway Companies at low rates of interest should proceed in order to bring themselves within the scope of that intimation, and in what manner will the Government require to be satisfied that such advances will be attended with an adequate increased facility to the public and development of traffic?

MR. GLADSTONE

I presume, Sir, that the Question of my hon. Friend the Member for Belfast is founded upon a declaration made by me at an earlier period of the Session; but I wish he had adverted exactly to the character of that prior declaration. The Question appears to imply that I had stated on the part of the Government, that we were ready to deal with Irish Railway Companies individually and separately, if they asked for loans at low rates of interest. I have referred to the Report —for which I am not in any way responsible—of the prior declaration made by me in this House. I have no doubt it corresponds substantially with what I said, and I will venture to repeat my words on that occasion:— It was quite impossible, however," I said, "for the Government to take the initiative in such a matter"—that of dealing with the railway companies—"because it depended entirely upon the arrangements and upon the economical management of the railway companies themselves. The first and the most essential step would be that the Irish railway companies should agree upon some reasonable principle of amalgamation, and should arrange among themselves for the transfer of the debt; and when that step had been taken, the initiative would lie with the railway companies, because the security could only be accepted in the event of its being perfect."—[3 Hansard, ccxv. 1166.] My hon. Friend will, therefore, perceive that combination and agreement among the companies themselves are of absolute necessity according to the declaration which was made by me.

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