§ 65. Mr. McAddenasked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he will give a general direction to the British Transport Commission to give such priority to the installation of automatic train control on all British Railways main lines as will enable the time taken by the operation to be drastically reduced below the present schedule of five years; and whether he will include in the forthcoming estimates of his Department a grant in aid to the Commission to assist them to carry out his direction.
§ Mr. WatkinsonNo. As the Chief Inspecting Officer of Railways said on Friday last, the Chairman of the British Transport Commission has assured me that the Commission will do all they can to accelerate the provision of automatic train control and other safety measures, notwithstanding the recent restrictions on capital expenditure. The second part of the Question does not therefore arise.