§ Miss HerbisonOn a point of order. Has the Minister of Transport asked you for permission to answer Question No. 104, Mr. Speaker? If not, but if he now asks for permission, would you give it to him, or has the right hon. Gentleman decided to keep silent on proposed railway closures until the Recess?
§ Mr. SpeakerI cannot answer for what the Minister has decided. I do 1352 not know what he has decided, but he has not made a request to me.
§ Mr. StraussOn a point of order. There are 113 Questions down to the Minister of Transport today. I believe that that is a record number for any Minister. That may or may not be a reflection of the dissatisfaction of the House at the right hon. Gentleman's conduct, but the fact remains that the House will have no further opportunity of questioning the Minister before the Recess, in August.
About 70 hon. Members are dissatisfied because they have not had Oral Answers to their Questions, and although I know that it is not your personal responsibility, Mr. Speaker, in the circumstances would it not be obviously in the interests of the House, or certainly of a large section of it, if special arrangements were made to enable hon. Members who have not been able to ask Oral Questions today to have some other opportunity to ask them before the Recess?
§ Mr. SpeakerI am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for recognising that it is not my personal responsibility. That involves the fact that it does not raise a point of order for me. If some rearrangement of Question Time is desired, no doubt that is a matter which could be discussed through the usual channels.