§ 22. Captain Pilkingtonasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation how many men were employed on road improvements in 1938, 1951 and today.
§ Mr. WatkinsonI am afraid I cannot supply my hon. and gallant Friend with figures in the precise form he requires. What details I have contain a number of figures, and I will circulate them in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
Following are the details:Returns which are available indicate that shortly before the war 126,083 men were directly employed by highway authorities. In 1951 the number of men directly employed was 84,297 and in addition 5,703 men were employed by contractors on behalf of highway authorities. In March, 1956, the corresponding figures were 78,626 and 8,621. All these figures refer to road maintenance as well as improvements. During this period, of course, there has been a very substantial increase in mechanisation both in road maintenance and in road improvements.