§ 82. Mr. Solleyasked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Admiralty whether he is aware that naval personnel serving in the Hong Kong area still complain of considerable delay in the postal services; and whether he proposes to take steps to put this matter right.
Mr. DugdaleNo complaints have been received in the Admiralty of delays to mail to or from Hong Kong. The time taken by air mail is dependent on the air services available and averages 10 days 185W from the United Kingdom. Surface and parcel mail necessarily take a long time owing to the distance involved and the shortage of shipping, but steps are being taken to reduce the transit time as much as possible. If my hon. Friend has any particular case in mind I should be glad if he would let me know.