Lord Hawkeasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether, before paying British Rail the next subsidy towards suburdan losses, they will find out what British Rail are doing to eliminate the frequent breakdown of the point system on the Brighton line which causes so much hardship and inconvenience to the workers of London.
§ Lord SkelmersdaleI am aware of and regret the inconvenience which has been caused to passengers as a result of equipment failures on the Brighton line. Day-to-day maintenance of equipment is however a matter for the British Railways Board. The board have in hand a major resignalling investment scheme on the line, including improvements to the track layout, and are confident that this will increase considerably the reliability and speed of services.