§ MR. J. G. WEIR (Ross and Cromarty)I beg to ask the Secretary to the. Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, having regard to the fact that the postal facilities in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland are worse than in any other part of the United Kingdom, will he state whether steps have yet been taken to extend to this part of the Kingdom the improved postal service outlined by the Chancellor of the Exchequer; and, if not, can he state when steps will be taken to give effect to these much needed postal reforms?
§ MR. HANBURYThe Postmaster General is not prepared to endorse the hon. Member's assumption that the postal facilities in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland are worse than in any other part of the United Kingdom; but he may state that the Post Office Surveyors in Scotland, in common with those in other parts of the United Kingdom, have been directed to submit, and, as a matter of fact, have begun to submit their proposals for extending the delivery of letters in accordance with the promises of the Budget Speech, and these proposals, after their examination in the Secretary's Office, will be carried into effect without any unnecessary delay. I must remind the hon. Member, however, that, as my right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer stated in his Budget Speech, the work of extending the deliveries to all parts of the country will occupy a considerable time, and cannot possibly be completed within the present financial year.