42. Sir HILTON YOUNGasked the Postmaster-General what is the estimated annual expenditure for the four Imperial wireless telephone services which it is proposed to concentrate at Rugby and Baldock, including interest on capital, depreciation charges, running costs, overhead charges, and allowances for cost of research?
§ Mr. LEES-SMITHThe total over-all cost inclusive of land lines up to the point of connection with the London Trunk Exchange, of providing public telephone services with Canada, South Africa, India and Australia by means of the Post Office radio stations at Rugby and Baldock is estimated at £43,000 a year. This cost includes £4,000 a year for existing costs at Rugby and Baldock, making a net additional cost for the Dominion's services of £39,000 a year. It also includes a margin of staff and equipment which will be available for the provision of other long-distance radio telephone services. As the latter are developed, the 1905 annual cost of the four Imperial services will be reduced to about £36,000 a year.
§ Captain CAZALETMay I ask whether, as a result of these new services, there will be a direct telephone communication between this country and Argentina?
§ Mr. LEES-SMITHThe new services which are at the moment under discussion are only new services with the Dominions.
43. Sir H. YOUNGasked the Postmaster-General what questions were put to the two experts consulted on the subject of overseas wireless telephony; and what were their answers?
§ Mr. LEES-SMITHIt is impossible within the limits of a Parliamentary answer to deal adequately with this subject, but broadly the questions were intended to elicit whether the high aerial system or the lower aerial system as used at Rugby was likely to prove the more effective. The experts reported that, apart from future developments, both systems are probably equally capable of providing satisfactory telephonic communication between two points for a given number of hours per day. They went on to express the opinion that as regards future development the adoption of the more elastic system, namely, the Rugby system with the lower masts, would be advantageous, since equally satisfactory results could be attained with a smaller expenditure of money, and they pointed out, in particular, that the provision of alternative wavelengths—a matter of importance from the point of view of reliability of service—is likely to be more cheaply made with the relatively low mast system.
Sir H. YOUNGIs it not necessary, in order that we may judge as to the weight of the authority of this opinion, that the House should have before it the actual terms of reference or the communication made to the experts; and, if that be so, will not the hon. Gentleman take some means, either by a White Paper or otherwise, of bringing this information before the House?
§ Mr. LEES-SMITHIf the House desires our questions to the experts, and the experts' replies, to be put into a White Paper, I shall be very glad to do so.