§ Mr. Kirbyasked the Minister of Health whether, in relation to replies he gave 1828W in this House to the hon. Member for Everton on 18th November, 1936, and the 21st June, 1937, he can now give the House any information as to the result of the conference in Liverpool on 16th November, 1938; is he aware that the Liverpool University, the Royal Infirmary, and other users of large amounts of coal in Liverpool have taken steps to reduce the smoke nuisance, whereas the railway companies appear to have taken none; that a gauge in the thickly-populated Everton district has, over a period of many years, registered the highest soot deposit for the whole of the country; and what steps lie proposes to take to abate the nuisance to the inhabitants?
§ Mr. ElliotI am informed that as a result of the recent conference in Liverpool the London Midland and Scottish Railway Company have decided to initiate a series of experiments in methods of firing locomotives with the object of mitigating smoke nuisance.
I am informed that this gauge has been placed intentionally in the midst of one of the most densely populated parts of Liverpool. The Everton district is not an industrial area and the gauge there is registering for the most part deposits resulting from the burning of domestic coal. The Liverpool Corporation have been active in mitigating the nuisance from manufacturing smoke.