§ Mr. Leadbitterasked the First Secretary of State and Secretary of State for Economic Affairs, in view of the importance of communications in development plans for the North-East region, what steps he has taken to ensure that adequate consultation takes place between his Department, local authorities and British Railways before closure proposals are submitted.
§ Mr. FoleyAs my hon. Friend has already been told, the North-East Development Group meets British Railways regularly to discuss railway communications in the North-East. As my right hon. Friend the Minister of Transport announced on 4th November, he has arranged for the Railways Board to give him particulars of passenger closure proposals before they are published, so that he may consider whether any particular case is clearly unacceptable at the outset. My Department will be fully consulted at this stage. In August, 1963, the local authorities, through their associations, were invited to inform the Minister of Transport, and any other Ministers affected, of their views on the non-hardship aspects of individual passenger closure proposals. On hardship matters, their representations are made to the Transport Users Consultative Committees.