§ 16. Mr. Spenceasked the Assistant Postmaster-General the approximate annual value and quantity of timber used by his Department; and how much of this is imported.
§ Mr. GammansTimber used by the Post Office consists mainly of telegraph poles, of which about 130,000, of a value of about £290,000, are used in a year. The Post Office has taken all homegrown supplies offered in recent years, amounting to between 5,000 and 10,000 poles a year. The rest of the supplies has been imported.
§ Mr. SpenceIn the present circumstances, will the Minister consider widening the specification for the type of pole to be used? Is my hon. Friend aware that we have an immense amount of home-grown timber which must find a market during the coming year? Will he see what he can do along these lines?
§ Mr. GammansIf my hon. Friend is thinking, as I imagine he is, of the timber recently blown down in Scotland, I assure him that the Post Office have already been in touch with the Forestry Commission and we are prepared to take all that we can use.
§ Mr. HobsonIs the Minister aware that the specification for home-grown timber is already much lower than that for imported timber?
§ Mr. GammansYes. I think that my hon. Friend was, in fact, seeking an assurance that the Post Office would not let go the opportunity of trying to use some of the timber which was, unfortunately, recently blown down in Scotland.