HL Deb 31 July 1968 vol 296 cc301-3

2.46 p.m.

LORD HAWKE

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question which stands in my name on the Order Paper.

[The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government whether as a result of public revulsion from his first thoughts, the Postmaster General has had any second thoughts regarding the future make up of the London Telephone Directory.]

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, my right honourable friend is considering the views, both favourable and unfavourable, which have been expressed and will make a statement in due course.

LORD HAWKE

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord for that very informative statement. Would he ask his right honourable friend whether it would not be possible to decrease the area covered by the four inner directories to make space for more lines, inasmuch as the area is very enormous indeed—unnecessarily so?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, I will certainly bring the noble Lord's remarks to the attention of my right honourable friend.

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, can Her Majesty's Government undertake to decide this matter before the Post Office becomes a corporation and therefore before Ministerial responsibility for such a matter ceases?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, did the noble Lord ask me when a statement would be made? I did not quite hear.

LORD DENHAM

My Lords, I asked whether Her Majesty's Government could undertake that the matter of the directories would be decided before the Post Office becomes a corporation and therefore while the decision can still be questioned in Parliament.

LORD BOWLES

Yes, my Lords, I can give that assurance.

BARONESS HORSBRUGH

My Lords, can the noble Lord say whether more favourable criticisms or more unfavourable criticisms of the scheme have been received?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, as a matter of fact there has been a considerable amount of unfavourable criticism from people who do not know what it is about. The position is this. In the London area alone 40 million inquiries are made to Directory Inquiries, and 16 million of the answers are already in the telephone subscribers' books. That shows that the books, even the four of them, are not clear enough or used enough by the subscribers, and therefore they go to the extent of making 40 million inquiries. That costs a lot of money, which is not now paid by subscribers.

LORD HAWKE

My Lords, could the noble Lord say whether those 40 million inquiries originate in the area where there would be access to these books, or do they originate outside the area by people who have not the books?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, they are in the areas covered by the books.

BARONESS EMMET OF AMBERLEY

My Lords, could the Minister say whether these inquiries have increased because we have now gone on to a dial? It takes people a good while to get used to it.

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, the dial has been in use for a quite long time. I do not know why they have to call Directory Inquiries because they cannot dial a number. With great respect, I think that has nothing to do with it.

LORD CONESFORD

My Lords, is the great increase in illiteracy to which the noble Lord calls attention any ground for penalising the literate?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, I do not think anybody would be able to curb the literate noble Lord.

BARONESS LLEWELYN-DAVIES OF HASTOE

My Lords, would my noble friend agree that if there are 40 million inquiries with only four books, there might be several more million inquiries when there are 36 books?

LORD BOWLES

My Lords, the point is—and it may not be obvious to the noble Baroness—that if we have a book for, let us say, the Borough of Kensington, that will cover not only the people who live in the Borough of Kensington but also every subscriber within an area of 100 square miles. Also there will be added 5,000 numbers of places like hospitals, stations, major places of entertainment and departmental stores throughout London. The Kensington Borough Directory will cover every subscriber from Harlesden to Battersea and from St. John's Wood to Fulham. Therefore, with one book the subscriber has a much wider number of people whom he can look up without having to go through four books or nine books, as the case may be.