§ CAPTAIN BAGOT (Westmoreland, Kendal)I beg to ask the Postmaster General whether an agreement between the Post Office and the National Telephone Company has been in preparation for two years; and whether, in view of the fact that he has stated on various occasions during the last year that the agreement would be shortly laid before the House of Commons, he can now state definitely before what date the agreement will be produced? At the same time, I may ask the right hon. Gentleman whether he is aware that the effect of the long delay in concluding the agreement between the Post Office and the National Telephone Company, and the refusal of the Post Office in the meantime to grant licences to Municipalities, has been to enable the National Telephone Company to increase their monopoly and place themselves in a better position than those Municipalities which wish to obtain licences; and if he can state how many applications for local licences from Municipalities have been received since it was decided to purchase the trunk lines?
§ MR. A. C. MORTON (Peterborough)May I at the same time ask the right hon. Gentleman whether the terms of the agreement with the National Telephone Company have yet been settled; and, if not, are they likely to be settled soon; and whether he is aware that the great delay in settling the agreement is extremely inconvenient to Local Authorities who are desirous to deal with the question of telephonic communication?
§ MR. HENNIKER HEATON (Canterbury)I wish also to ask the right hon. Gentleman a question of which I have given him private notice, i.e., whether he will take care that in any agreement between himself and the National Telephone Company provisions are made that in the event of the purchase by the State of the Company's property only the market value of the stock and plant actually belonging to the Company shall be paid as consideration money, without taking into account prospective profits, or any claim for goodwill, or any similar claim?
THE POSTMASTER GENERAL (Mr. A. MOKLEY,) Nottingham, E.Since I answered a question on this subject on the 30th of April last further points of considerable complexity have arisen in connection with the settlement of the details of the agreement. While I very much regret the delay which has occurred—a delay which is in no respect due to any absence of effort on my part to bring it to a successful conclusion—I cannot think that it has enabled the National Telephone Company either to increase their monopoly or to place themselves in a better position. In fact, the hon. Member for the Southern Division of Westmoreland appears to forget that the National Telephone Company only enjoy a temporary licence which terminates in 1911, and that every month that passes must therefore have the effect of reducing the value of their goodwill in the business. I hope the hon. Member will not press me to answer the latter part of his question, as I do not think it would be desirable in the public interest to reply to it at the present moment. With reference to the question of which the hon. Member for Canterbury has given me private notice, I must point out that the agreement now being negotiated is simply intended to give effect to the arrangement made by the late Government for the purchase of the Company's Trunk wires—an arrangement which did not contemplate any interference with the general conditions of the existing licence.