§ MR. MURRAY MACDONALD (Falkirk Burghs)I beg to ask the President of the Board of Trade whether, seeing that, under the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Act of 1859, c. 110, s. 47, the Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway Company is bound to deposit with the Board of Trade a copy of any agreement with respect to the conveyance of passengers or goods which that company may make with any other railway or canal company, the company has within the last throe years so deposited a copy of any agreement made with the London and North Western Railway Company; whether other railway companies are bound in similar fashion to deposit with the Board of Trade copies of such agreements; and, if not, whether he will consider the advisability of introducing legislation to impose such obligations on all railway and canal companies.
§ THE SECRETARY TO THE BOARD OF TRADE (Mr. KEARLEY, Devonport)A copy of an agreement entered into by the Lancashire and Yorkshire and the London and North Western Railway Companies on the 31st December 1904, was deposited with the Board of Trade in accordance with the provision of the special Act referred to. We are not aware of any similar provision in any Act relating to companies other than the Lancashire and Yorkshire company, but I may point out that all working agreements between railway companies entered into under the authority of Acts incorporating the Railways Clauses Act, 1863, have to be deposited with and approved by the Railway and Canal Commission.