HC Deb 15 November 1967 vol 754 cc426-7
14 and 15. Mr. Gibson-Watt

asked the Minister of Transport (1) what decision she has reached on the future of the railway line from Llanelly to Craven Arms;

(2) whether she will initiate a public inquiry to make public the facts and figures concerning the proposed closure of the railway line from Llanelly to Craven Arms.

Mr. John Morris

My right hon. Friend has not reached a decision on the future of this line, but she has raised no objection to publication by the Railways Board of a proposal to withdraw passenger services from it. Objections to the proposal, when published, will be considered by the Transport Users' Consultative Committee for Wales and Monmouth-shire at a public hearing before they report to her. The Committee and any objectors will have full details of the services and the use made of them.

Mr. Gibson-Watt

Many hon. Members will be aware of the difficulty of this problem and will remember that this was a railway which was reprieved by the Conservative Government. Will it be abundantly clear to the public in this wide area what the figures for passenger traffic are on this line? That is what I want to know.

Mr. Morris

On the hon. Gentleman's first point, this was a proposal which was before the right hon. Member for Wallasey (Mr. Marples) and it was refused. One of the difficulties of the 1962 Act, for which the hon. Member voted, was that it allowed certain refusals but did not provide the means to pay for them. This is one of the reasons why the railway industry is in deficit today, to which some hon. Members opposite object. The hon. Gentleman's second point will be canvassed within the terms of the T.U.C.C's remit at the public hearing.

Mr. E. Rowlands

I agree entirely with my hon. Friend that if this line had been kept open under the 1962 Act it would have contributed to the deficit about which hon. Members opposite complain. Would my hon. Friend say how many miles of line in Wales have been closed since the Labour Party came to power in 1964 and how our record compares with that of the Conservatives?

Mr. Morris

So far, not a single line in Wales has been decided for closure by a Labour Minister. If I recall aright—I know that it is no comfort to hon. Members opposite—about 180 or 190 miles of line were closed in Wales in one month before the 1964 election.