§ 31. Sir JOHN SPEARasked the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he is aware that the portion of the carriage and motor-car licences, collected by county councils, which is handed over to the Road Board is used by that body in road improvements which, however desirable in themselves, have not been hitherto required at the hands of county councils, and that before the funds of the Road Board are expended in this work county councils are required to find half the cost out of the county rates; and, seeing that the establishment of the Road Board has thereby much increased the demands on the ratepayers in addition to the increased direct expense entailed on county councils for the repair of damage done to the roads by motor traffic, will he embrace an early opportunity of securing to county councils the whole revenue arising from carriage and motor-car licences?
§ Mr. LLOYD GEORGEI do not agree that the establishment of the Road Board has much increased the demands on ratepayers. On the contrary it has enabled them to meet demands for the improvement of roads necessitated by the altered 1862 conditions of traffic, which would otherwise have had to be met from rates.
§ 61. Mr. HOAREasked the President of the Local Government Board whether he has any powers for the inspection of roads; whether at his office he has any staff allocated to road administration; and whether any Grants other than those made by the Road Board are made from the Exchequer to the local road authorities?
§ Mr. BURNSThe Local Government Board sanction loans for the making, widening, and improvement of roads, the total sum so sanctioned last year exceeding 1½ million pounds, and, in connection with applications for such sanction and with town planning schemes, the Board's inspectors are frequently making inspections of roads and the sites of new roads in all parts of England and Wales. The Board have not thought it desirable to allocate any staff exclusively to road administration, and I could easily show to the hon. Member that it would neither be desirable nor economical to do so. The Main Road Grant which existed prior to the Local Government Act, 1888, was discontinued, and at the present time the Grants made by the Road Board are the only specific Grants made to local road authorities from Imperial sources.