2. Mr. John D. TaylorTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland for what reasons the emergency telephone system on motorways is to be replaced; and if he will make a statement. [26376]
§ Mr. MossThe chief executive of the Department of the Environment's road service advises me that the existing motorway emergency telephone system is more than 30 years old and is now obsolete. Many of the spare parts needed to maintain it are no longer available. In the interests of safety, it is therefore imperative that a new replacement system be provided.
Mr. TaylorIf the telephone system is 30 years old today, it was 29 years old yesterday. Why has it suddenly become a priority expenditure in the roads programme in Northern Ireland? It has never been in the roads programme before. Why has it replaced important major road schemes in the constituency of Strangford, which has not had a major road scheme for many years? Especially, I name the Comber bypass and the major link road between the Comber road and the Portaferry road in Newtownards, both of which were on the road programme and both of which have been damaged by the sudden inclusion of a new telephone system on the motorways. Is the real reason for the priority that the new telephone system is in some way connected with the provision of cable television in Northern Ireland?
§ Mr. MossIn some ways, I regret having to contradict what the hon. Gentleman just said. The telephone system was first assessed by independent consultants back in March 1989, and recommendations in the short term were implemented in 1990 and 1991. It was recommended that the entire system be replaced, and the scheme first appeared in the five-year programme in 1993–94. We had to prioritise the road programme for the next five years, and the Comber bypass has slipped by only one year.