§ Mr. WARDLEasked the annual amount paid to railway companies as payment for telegraph work performed by them on behalf of the Government?
§ Mr. HERBERT SAMUELThe amount paid to railway companies as payment for telegraph work performed by them during 1909 on behalf of the Post Office was £55,510. This amount includes the payments made for delivery of telegrams as well as for transmission. It does not include payment for maintenance of telegraph lines on Railways.
§ Mr. WARDLEasked the Postmaster-General whether he is aware that a considerable proportion of Government telegraph work on railways is performed by signalmen; whether this is in accordance with the Government's requirements; and whether, in future, he will direct that this work be performed by telegraph clerks so as to relieve signalmen from this addition to their ordinary duties?
§ Mr. HERBERT SAMUELThe railway companies do not contract to perform telegraph work on behalf of the Post Office, but do it under an obligation imposed upon them by Statute. The work is auxiliary to their own telegraph business, 1425W and would, as a rule, be performed by the same staff. But I have no official information on the subject, and have no title to intervene in the manner suggested in the question.