§ Sir S. JOHNSONasked the Postmaster-General if he is aware that the regulation that postal packages bearing a halfpenny stamp, which in a very large number of cases contain only invoices, must be posted in the industrial towns in the North of England before 3 o'clock in the afternoon in order to be delivered in London on the following day is causing serious inconvenience to traders, owing to the fact that goods referred to in such invoices despatched by rail at or near 6 p.m. on the day of the posting of the invoices are delivered in London on the day following despatch, and cannot be dealt with owing to the non-delivery of the corresponding invoices; and will he take steps, in the interest of the trading community, to cancel the regulation in question and to ensure that postal packages bearing halfpenny stamps put into the post office before 5 p.m. in the North of England shall be delivered in London on the day following the despatch of the same?
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Mr. N. CHAMBEFILAINThe receipt of large quantities of circulars, etc., late in the evening gives rise to considerable expense and inconvenience. In order, therefore, to secure earlier posting the reduction of the minimum rate on printed papers to ½d was limited to packets posted before a specified time in the afternoon. This restriction, which is on326W the lines recommended by the Geddes Committee, has resulted in substantial economies and improvement in organisation. I would remind the hon. Member that urgent packets which cannot be posted before 3.30 p.m. will be dealt with after that hour if they are prepaid at the old rate of 1d. for the first 2 ozs.