§ 27 and 28. Sir J. Duncanasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation (1) how many men are on average employed directly and indirectly per million pounds spent on the construction of trunk roads;
(2) his estimate of the average number of men employed directly and indirectly per mile in the construction of trunk roads; and the average length of time of these men's employment per mile.
§ Mr. WatkinsonIt is not possible to answer my hon. Friend's Questions precisely, because labour returns do not distinguish between employment on trunk roads and other major roads. At the end of September last, work was in hand on new works and major improvements which we expect will cost £55 million, and nearly 21,000 men were employed—that is, 380 men per million pounds. On the London to Birmingham motorway, a maximum of about 4,000 men are employed on 53 miles of road, or about 75 men a mile.
§ Sir J. DuncanDo not those figures show that it is rather a delusion to think that much inroad can be made into unemployment by extensive road works, or other similar public works; and is not it right that that fact should be brought forward when considering ways of dealing with the unemployment problem?
§ Mr. WatkinsonI think that my hon. Friend is perfectly right in saying that this work does not make a very large direct contribution. Modern road construction does not directly absorb very large numbers of people.