§ 17. Mr. Swinglerasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if he will reconsider the amount of the road grant to Staffordshire, in view of the increasing weight of traffic on the county's roads, the number of danger spots, and the chronic congestion of traffic in principal towns.
§ Mr. MolsonI regret that no further grant funds can be made available to Staffordshire in the current financial year, but the considerations which the hon. Member mentions will be given full weight in allocating funds for next year.
§ Mr. SwinglerWill not the new Parliamentary Secretary put aside his brief and study the problem with a fresh mind? Is he aware that Staffordshire is receiving a smaller grant than neighbouring counties because its roads happen to be narrower although they are far more used and much more dangerous and, therefore, are in far greater need of repair? Will the hon. Gentleman reconsider the whole basis of allocations, which is grossly inefficient?
§ Mr. MolsonI have already had occasion to study the grievances of Staffordshire. Although we hope to allocate more money next year, as I have said, I cannot admit that Staffordshire has so far suffered any injustice. Whereas the average reduction in grant for all the counties in the Kingdom this year was 3.5 per cent., the reduction in the case of Staffordshire was only 1.8 per cent. and, although Staffordshire has not the greatest mileage in the Midland division, the maintenance allocation was the highest. I therefore feel that Staffordshire has not been harshly treated.
§ Mr. SnowIs my hon. Friend aware that those figures mean absolutely nothing unless one takes into consideration the original grants over the years? Secondly, 1707 would he call for a report on that section of A5 from Fazeley to Rugeley, which is a perfectly appalling section of a national road that is a direct responsibility of the Government?
§ Mr. MolsonMy right hon. Friend received in the summer a deputation of hon. Members representing the county of Staffordshire, and as a result of what was said to him then he has given orders that there should be a special investigation of Staffordshire's requirements.
§ 29. Mr. Harold Daviesasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation how often the Class I and Class II roads in Staffordshire are re-surfaced; and how this figure compares with the national figure of complete re-surfacing every 42 years.
§ Mr. MolsonI am informed that since the war the Class I and Class II roads in Staffordshire have been re-surfaced at an average rate of once every 33 years, which is considerably better than the national average.
§ Mr. DaviesIs the Minister aware that if the re-surfacing rate is better than the national average some of us are sorry for the national average? Is he also aware that, after considerable search, the hon. Member for Leek has discovered that the Romans re-surfaced Watling Street, which is a part of the A5 road, at a faster rate than this at the time of the Augustine Empire?
§ Mr. MolsonIt may be that the quality of the Roman roads was not as high as the quality of the roads today.
§ 30. Mr. Harold Daviesasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation the tonnage per mile per week of traffic passing over Class I roads in Staffordshire, as compared with Cheshire and Shropshire.
§ Mr. MolsonNo comprehensive census in these counties has been carried out since 1938, when the average weekly tonnage of traffic per census point was 31,799 tons in Staffordshire, 29,848 tons in Cheshire and 17,005 tons in Shropshire. The census was based on traffic counted at particular points and no figure can be given indicating tonnage per mile.
§ Mr. DaviesWhile thanking the hon. Gentleman for those figures, may I ask him whether he is aware that they demonstrate the paramount importance of Staffordshire roads to the British economy? Is not he aware that in the industrial axis from Liverpool to London, where about five-sixths of the population of Britain live, access to East and West ports is bound to be taken over the roads of Staffordshire and that, consequently, without just pushing the case for Staffordshire, it is of paramount importance to the British economy to get a further grant for these roads?
§ Mr. MolsonIf I had ever been in doubt about the importance of Staffordshire to the British economy, I should have been informed upon the subject in the course of the last seven days.
§ 31. Mr. Harold Daviesasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation if he is aware of the dangerous condition of most of the Class I and Class II roads in the county of Stafford; and when he will allocate an extra grant to the county for road maintenance and repairs.
§ Mr. MolsonMy right hon. Friend cannot endorse the suggestion that these roads are dangerous through lack of maintenance, but he will give full weight to Staffordshire's claims to receive more money for road maintenance when allocating funds for next year.
§ Mr. DaviesIs the Minister aware that, while we are voting millions of pounds for the defence of this country, it is one of the most foolish acts from a strategic point of view to undermine the standard of our roads? Does he realise that if we had to evacuate London there would be chaos on the ancient roads of Britain?
§ Mr. MolsonI can hardly imagine any development of the roads of Britain which would not result in chaos if London had to be evacuated.