§ EARL STANHOPEMy Lords, I beg to ask the Postmaster General if he will explain under what circumstances and in what cases the hours of posting for the provincial mails have been curtailed, in consequence of the transfer of a portion of the work of the General Post Office to Mount Pleasant. It will be within your Lordships' knowledge that certain complaints have arisen owing to the curtailment of the hours to which I have referred. This alteration is a source of great inconvenience in the West End and in the City, and it is with the object of getting an explanation from the noble Marquess the Postmaster General that I have put down this question.
*THE POSTMASTER GENERAL (The Marquess of LONDONDERRY)My Lords, the question which has been put to me by my noble friend is, if I may venture to say 599 so, a very pertinent and practical one, and I do not in the least regret that it has been asked. The matter is creating certain doubts — I might almost say misapprehensions— in the minds of the public at large, but if it had been possible the Post Office would gladly have avoided the transfer referred to. But they had no other course open to them owing to the pressure of business and the likelihood of that pressure being increased. The Post Office building at St. Martin's-le-Grand, which had hitherto been devoted to sorting purposes, was found to be absolutely inadequate for the work, and as regards the employees there was danger that the sanitary arrangements would be insufficient. To give an idea of the increase in the work during the last few years, I may state that from a return taken in November, 1895, the number of articles posted in the E.G. district weekly was 8,300,000 and the number delivered in the E.G. district was 4,221,000, making a total of 12,500,000. From the latest return of November, 1899, the numbers had risen to 9,536,000 (an increase of nearly 15 per cent.) and 4,761,000 (an increase of nearly 13 per cent.) respectively, or a total of 14,290,000. The number of articles despatched from St. Martin's-le-Grand to places abroad was in May, 1896, 2,033,000. The number is now 2,842,000 (an increase of nearly 40 per cent.), but this is temporarily swollen by the large amount of correspondence which is now sent weekly to the troops in South Africa. Owing also to the reduction of rates of the inland letter postage in 1897 the bulk of the articles sent through the post has materially increased, and this is a serious factor as regards the space available in the sorting office. I think I have shown your Lordships by these figures that some movement was necessary, and it was absolutely impossible to continue the whole of the work in the old building. Consequently my predecessor decided to transfer, roughly speaking, one-half of the duties of St. Martin's-le-Grand to what is now known as Mount Pleasant, a building one mile off on the site of what was formerly the Coldbath Fields prison. For some years a large portion of the business of the parcel post has been carried on there, and on Monday last it was opened for its new work. I do not deny that there has been a certain amount of inconvenience to the public in connection with the transfer, and I do not attempt to 600 shirk any responsibility, but I can only ask your Lordships, and through you the public, to exercise the leniency which is called for when there is a transfer of such a large number of employés and plant. The site of the new building is on the extreme edge of the E.C. district, but it was the only site available for a building of the dimensions necessary, and, as your Lordships know, it belonged to the Government. The duties transferred to Mount Pleasant were those relating to the postal arrangements connected with the provinces. The foreign mails and all the postal arrangements connected with London will remain at St. Martin's-le-Grand. I wish particularly to impress upon your Lordships that practically there is no alteration in the hours of posting in any district in London as a result of the change, except in the E.C. district. There may be certain delay in connection with letters posted in London in the middle or early part of the day. Letters posted in the south or east of London and intended for the south and east provinces will have further to go to Mount Pleasant than they had to the old Post Office. But there will be a corresponding gain in point of time with regard to letters posted in the north and west for the north and west provinces, for the reason that those districts are nearer to Mount Pleasant. Except as regards the E.C. district there will be no alteration in the hours of posting for the night mails to the provinces. At Mount Pleasant the hours of posting will be the same now as they have hitherto been at St. Martin's-le-Grand, and the hours of posting for the general night mails will be maintained all over the district. But letters intended for despatch to the provinces by mails other than the general night mails should as a rule, if posted elsewhere than at Mount Pleasant, be posted about half an hour earlier. I may mention that in the E.C. district letters will no longer be able to be posted in pillar and wall boxes with an extra halfpenny stamp up to seven p.m. It has been found that of the 50,000 letters per night so posted an average of only 700 bear the extra stamp, and it is not practicable to examine 50,000 letters for the sake of 700. It has therefore been decided to abolish the wall and pillar boxes for late-fee letters. I wish it to be understood that although that facility is taken away the facilities offered are satisfactory, because at every post- 601 office in the east-central district the facilities for late-fee posting will exist as before, and no one will have to walk more than 200 yards in the east central district in order to reach a post-office. The main point to which exception has been taken is that late-post letters must be posted at St. Martin's-le-Grand at 7.30 instead of at 7.45, as hitherto. The pressure at the General Post Office has been so great that it has been found absolutely necessary to remove a certain portion of the work to another building. It takes a quarter of an hour to get from St. Martin's-le-Grand to the new building, and that quarter of an hour has to be made up in some way, otherwise the mails would not catch the trains. After considering the matter very carefully my predecessor arrived at the conclusion, in which I concur, that that quarter of an hour should be taken off the time allowed at St. Martin's-le-Grand. I believe the inconvenience has been greatly exaggerated. I can only say, on behalf of myself and the Department over which I preside, that we do not think we are asking too much of the public, having regard to the convenience of every part of the country, and that we believe we shall be able to carry on our enormous and daily increasing task in a manner which will give satisfaction to She country.