HC Deb 15 October 1952 vol 505 cc176-9
14. Mr. Proctor

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General the total amount of losses sustained through mail bag robberies during the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement regarding the more recent robberies.

Mr. Gammans

The estimated loss of currency involved in mail bag thefts during the 12 months ended 30th September, 1952, is about £290,000, which includes the loss of about £240,000 in the mail van robbery in Central London on 21st May, last.

As regards the second part of the Question, I do not think there is anything I can usefully add to the statement made by my noble Friend yesterday in another place.

Mr. Proctor

Is the hon. Gentleman aware that the public are gravely disturbed by the lack of success of his Department in dealing with this matter, and can he assure us that he is taking the necessary steps to see that notes returned for cancellation or destruction are cancelled and rendered useless before they leave the banks? If he has any difficulty in devising a simple method of doing this, would he consult the Railway Executive who cancel tickets and render them useless?

Mr. Gammans

In reply to the first part of the supplementary, I would remind the hon. Gentleman that the responsibility for law and order and for the apprehension of criminals does not rest upon the Post Office but upon the Police. With regard to the second point, only a comparatively small part of the currency which is sent through the Post Office is due for cancellation, and therefore I think the hon. Member will agree that his suggestion does not apply.

Mr. Ness Edwards

Is there any significance in the reply which the hon. Gentleman has given in the sense that he has only given the amount of currency. The Question asks for the total loss, and not only the loss of currency.

Mr. Gammans

There is no significance except that, as the right hon. Gentleman knows, the Post Office does not keep returns of the amount of losses claimed but only those losses for which they pay compensation. If the right hon. Gentleman would like to know what those figures are I should be delighted to give them to him.

Mr. Proctor

Would it be correct to say that the £240,000 that was lost consisted of notes sent for cancellation? If that is so, how does the hon. Gentleman suggest that that is only a small proportion?

Mr. Gammans

Only a percentage of those notes were sent for cancellation.

Mr. W. R. Williams

Dealing with the first part of the Question, can the Minister say what proportion of these losses take place when the bags are outside the direct control of the Post Office?

Mr. Gammans

When mail bags are lost on the railways they are the responsibility of the railways.

19. Mr. Hobson

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General if he will make a further statement on the ambush of the Post Office mail van near Oxford Street in May last; and if internal Departmental inquiries are now complete.

Mr. Gammans

I regret I have no further information to give the House about the mail van robbery in Central London on 21st May last. On the question of mail robberies generally, I cannot usefully add to what was said yesterday by my noble Friend in another place.

Mr. Hobson

Does not the hon. Gentleman think that it is about time the House was informed in more detail of the result of the Departmental inquiry, particularly in regard to the fact that the mail which was stolen could have been transferred on the Post Office underground railway; that there was a deliberate routeing of the vehicle near Oxford Street, and that the vehicle had been deliberately changed?

Mr. Gammans

With regard to the last two points mentioned by the hon. Gentleman, I dealt with those when he raised the matter in the House earlier this year. I am sure he would not ask me to give the House any details of the additional precautions that have been and still will be taken to prevent a recurrence of this sort of thing.

Mr. Hobson

Does not the hon. Gentleman really think that with regard to an inquiry which has taken place in the Post Office the House is entitled to know what action has been taken with regard to the points I have raised, particularly with regard to the routeing of the vehicle?

Mr. Gammans

I can assure the hon. Gentleman that the most stringent inquiry has taken place, and I can equally assure him that it would be most undesirable if most of the results of that inquiry were made public.

20. Lieut.-Colonel Lipton

asked the Assistant Postmaster-General whether all thefts of mail in transit are reported to the police immediately the loss is discovered.

Mr. Gammans

As soon as the Investigation Branch of the Post Office is reasonably satisfied that a theft of mails in transit has been committed, the police are at once informed.

Lieut.-Colonel Lipton

Does not the value of this semi-immediate notification to the police become considerably minimised when, despite the requests of the police, the news of the theft is not released to the public, as happened in the case of the £14,000 Doncaster mail robbery?

Mr. Gammans

I do not think that any responsible police officer would agree with that statement.

Lieut.-Colonel Lipton

It is not a fact that the news of the £14,000 robbery which took place between Doncaster and Barnsley was not released to the public until three days after the robbery had taken place?

Mr. Gammans

There was a delay in releasing the news to the public; but I can assure the hon. and gallant Gentleman that that was deliberate.

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