§ Mr. Milneasked the Minister of Transport if he will initiate a survey of the rôle to be played in the country's 85W economy by the smaller ports in Great Britain, in view of the trends towards the use of larger ships in the shipping industry, and the consequent need to trans-ship goods before they reach their final destination.
Mr. Bob BrownNo. The National Ports Council, whose responsibility it is to advise me on these matters, have given considerable attention to the future of the smaller ports. They are convinced that there is a continuing rôle for such ports, particularly in handling cargoes for local use and in the coastal and short-sea trades. The economic size of ships for particular trades varies considerably; for a wide variety of cargoes, especially in the near and short-sea trades, it is still generally within the capacity of most of the smaller ports of this country.