§ 4. Mr. Rowlandsasked the Secretary of State for Wales on what date Messrs. Rendel Palmer and Tritton were engaged by his Department to investigate possible routes for sections 4 and 5 of the Merthyr-Cardiff trunk road; and what instructions he gave to them concerning the completion date of their investigations.
§ Mr. Peter ThomasOctober, 1965. I understand that no specific date was set for the completion of the investigations
§ Mr. RowlandsIs the right hon. and learned Gentleman aware that there is unanimous support on both sides of the House for the most speedy completion of this road, which is vital to the economic well-being not only of Merthyr but of all of the Heads of the Valleys authorities? Is he further aware of the widespread dismay which results from the information which he has given us that the road will not be completed virtually until 1978 and that there will be a time lapse of nearly four years between the completion of stages 2 and 3 and stages 4 and 5? Instead of just accepting the advice that it is impossible to build the road faster because of procedural and technical reasons, will he investigate whether he can employ extra staff and speed up the procedures, even cutting a few corners, so that this vital road is built as quickly as possible?
§ Mr. ThomasAs the hon. Gentleman knows, I had a very interesting and rewarding meeting with him and members of the Merthyr council the other day to discuss the question of this road. I am sure that he must have been very impressed by the figures given to him which indicated that we are devoting considerable resources to building this road and are moving ahead as fast as possible. I assure him that I need no prompting from him to go ahead faster.