§ 14. Mr. J. H. Osbornasked the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications what deposits are demanded for domestic telephone subscribers when ordering telephones ; what is now the average delay in installing telephones ; what is the total value of such deposits held by the telephone service ; and at what stage interest is paid.
§ Mr. ChatawayI would refer my hon. Friend to the reply I gave to my hon. Friend the Member for Paddington, South (Mr. Scott) on 13th January.—[Vol. 809, c. 80–81.]
§ Mr. OsbornDoes the Post Office wish to expand, and increase the number of subscribers? Is not the habit of demanding a deposit a development by a major State monopoly of a most undersirable kind?
§ Mr. ChatawayI think that in certain circumstances it is only sensible to ask for a deposit—as, for example, if creditworthiness is not established. That is a practice which is followed in the gas and electricity industries, as well as by private enterprise.