HC Deb 27 July 1897 vol 51 cc1227-8
MR. EDWARD M'HUGH (Armagh, S.)

I beg to ask the Secretary to the Treasury, as representing the Postmaster General, if the Postmaster General is aware that for the last 10 years the sorting carriage by day mail between Portadown and Derry has been worked by two sorters from the Portadown office; will he explain on what grounds one of these officers has recently been withdrawn, and replaced by a Dublin sorter who has to perform two days' work inside the 24 hours; is he aware that this change entails an additional expenditure of at least 21s. a week, and also causes. the sorting carriage to have but one officer in it on the return journey from Derry; in the event of this officer becoming sick or meeting with an accident in working the apparatus, is he aware that the return English day mail arrangements between Perry and Portadown would be completely upset; and, will he take such steps as he considers necessary to prevent such an eventuality occurring?

MR. HANBURY

For the last ten years the sorting carriage between Portadown and Derry has been worked by two sorters from the Portadown office. One of these officers was recently replaced by a Dublin sorter because, since the acceleration of the mail service between England and Ireland, some sorting work formerly done at Dublin has had to be done in the night mail train from Omagh to Dublin, and as it is necessary to employ on this duty some one acquainted with the Dublin sorting, an officer travels down from Dublin for the purpose by the day mail train. Instead of letting this officer travel down idle, it has been thought well to utilise his services on the down journey by employing him on the work hitherto performed by the junior officer from Portadown. Two officers from Dublin arc employed on alternate days, and the attendance of each is fourteen hours in two days. This arrangement (like others necessitated by the acceleration) involves additional cost, but the exact amount proper to the Portadown and Omagh section of the duty cannot at this moment be stated. A second officer is not required for sorting purposes on the earlier part of the return journey from Derry, and it has not been thought necessary to send a second officer in the train to meet a possible case of accident or illness.