25. Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSasked the Minister of Transport whether he will arrange for the actual fares payable to appear on railway tickets instead of the pre-war rates as shown at present?
§ Sir E. GEDDESI am not yet in a position to add to the reply given on this subject on the 30th October to the hon. Baronet the Member for London University, except that the matter is receiving careful consideration and there will be no avoidable delay in arriving at a decision.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSIs the delay due to the fact that the right hon. Gentleman is considering a further increase of passenger fares?
§ Sir E. GEDDESI am not aware of it.
§ Sir S. HOAREWill the right hon. Gentleman be able to make a statement on this point before the end of the Session?
§ Sir E. GEDDESI will certainly endeavour to do so.
§ Mr. MACQUISTENThis is a very important matter. As a rule, people cannot calculate this 50 per cent. increase, particularly children, who do not always get the proper change.
§ Sir E. GEDDESIt was in the interests of economy that the large stocks of printed tickets were not destroyed. I think those stocks will very soon be exhausted, and as there is no intention of altering the fares, the new tickets will be printed with the exact fares on them.
§ Mr. MACQUISTENWhat does it cost to print 10,000,000 tickets?
§ Sir E. GEDDESI should like notice of that question.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSDoes the right hon. Gentleman mean that no railway tickets have been printed with the old fares on them since the outbreak of war?
§ Sir E. GEDDESI am afraid I cannot answer that question now, but I shall be glad to inquire and let my hon. Friend know.
26. Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSasked the Minister of Transport whether he can state the annual cost to the public of the present rule which allows officers travelling in uniform but not on duty to buy railway tickets at rates one-third of those payable by the general public?
§ Sir E. GEDDESThe information is not available, and I can only refer the hon. and gallant Member to the reply given by the Financial Secretary to the War Office on the 19th November.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSCould not the right hon. Gentleman get this information? In view of the fact that these tickets are only issued to officers on production of an Army form authorising the drawing of them, would it not be a simple matter to count these Army forms and make an estimate of the cost to the public?
§ Sir E. GEDDESIt would be a very serious task to undertake, but, if my hon. and gallant Friend attaches very great importance to it, I will endeavour to see what can be done.
Lieut.-Colonel GUINNESSThe right hon. Gentleman has referred to an answer to a question given by the War Office. Will he establish an independant inquiry, because the War Office inquiry probably will be carried out by officers whose travelling is affected by this concession?
§ Colonel YATEthe right hon. Gentleman see that the allowance it granted to officers in the future?
§ 37. Mr. ATKEYasked the Minister of Transport whether he is aware that the Midland Railway Company have refused to grant to Messrs. Cooper and Roe, Limited, on behalf of their traveller, Mr. Charles Smith, interavailability facilities in respect of the first-class season ticket issued by the Great Central and Great Northern Joint Railways, No. T. 552, as between London and Nottingham and Manchester on the ground that Nottingham is not in the Midland direct route between London and Manchester; and will he instruct the Midland Railway Company to grant the interavailability facility requested, in view of the fact that their direct route passes within six miles of Nottingham and they compete on equal terms with the Great Central Railway in respect to transit between London and Nottingham and Manchester?
§ Sir E. GEDDESMy attention has not previously been called to this individual complaint, but I will make inquiry.