§ Mr. Martenasked the Postmaster-General (1) why the Oxford telephone area has the highest waiting list of telephone subscribers, as a percentage of the total number of subscribers, in any telephone area in Great Britain and Northern Ireland;
(2) what steps he proposes to take to reduce the waiting list of telephone subscribers in the Oxford area, so as to give the area a better share of telephones.
§ Mr. BevinsAs my hon. Friend knows, there has been rapid development in parts of this area, and the demand for telephones has been very high. There have also been difficulties in recruitment.
I am doing my best to meet outstanding demands though my total resources are limited. During the past five years 50W 25,000 new telephones have been provided in the Oxford area, and the net increase has been 25 per cent. compared with 18 per cent. for the rest of the country. During the next twelve months I expect to provide 6,000 telephones in the area.