HC Deb 22 July 1897 vol 51 cc703-5
MR. T. M. HEALY (Louth, N.)

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, whether the Waterford Limerick and Western Railway Company, under statutory notice from the postal authorities, are starting the morning mails from Limerick to Ennis at 10.12, or three minutes before the 7.0 a.m. from Tralee is timed to arrive at Limerick, so that for all practical purposes there is now no through communication between the west and north of Limerick viâ Ennis; and, can he cause a notice to be served on the Waterford Limerick and Western Company to detain the Ennis mails for at least 15 minutes, so as to form a connection?

THE SECRETARY TO THE TREASURY (Mr. R. W. HANBURY, Preston)

The Waterford Limerick and Western Railway Company, not under statutory notice from the Postmaster General, but under arrangement, are starting the day mail train from Limerick to Ennis at 10.12 a.m., which is, it appears, three minutes before the 7.0 a.m. train from Tralee is timed to arrive at Limerick. A detention of the train for 15 minutes or longer in order to afford a connection with the 7.0 a.m. train from Tralee, which is not a mail train, would be detrimental to the Post Office service, and is not an alteration which the Postmaster General would feel justified in pressing upon the company. It is understood, however, that the company are considering whether by any means they can arrange to bring the 7.0 a.m. train earlier to Limerick and thus effect the desired object.

MR. W. O'MALLEY (Galway, Connemara)

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, what steps, if any, he proposes to take to remedy the inconvenience occasioned in the late delivery of letters throughout the greater part of Connemara since the acceleration of the mails; and whether he will also take steps to have the letters delivered at the houses of the principal people in the various districts, as the present arrangement, by which persons have to send to the post offices for their letters, is most unsatisfactory?

MR. HANBURY

The Postmaster General has made careful inquiry in this matter, and has I believe explained to the hon. Member by letter the cause of the later delivery of letters in Connemara, and the reason why it is not practicable to reduce that delay by more than a few minutes. The explanation of course is that the arrival in Dublin of the day mail trains from the provinces was made 50 minutes later in order to give provincial trains the largest possible intervals for replies to English letters, and as a necessary consequence the dispatch of the night mail trains from Dublin to the provinces was made later to the same extent to maintain the connections between the inward day mails and the outward night mails. The various surveyors' proposals, for extending the delivery of letters throughout the United Kingdom, in accordance with the promise of the Budget speech, are being received; and the proposals, after examination, will be carried into effect without any unnecessary delay. The work of extending the deliveries in all parts of the country must necessarily occupy a considerable time.