§ Mr. Cordleasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will issue a circular to all local authorities in England and Wales recommending that street lighting, except at road junctions, should be switched off on minor roads and drastically reduced on major roads after 1 a.m. so as to conserve fuel.
§ Mr. CarmichaelMy right hon. Friend is at present reviewing the existing level of road lighting. There is, however, no doubt that lighting is an important factor in improving road safety throughout the total hours of darkness, and he must take full account of this in reaching his conclusions. I cannot anticipate his decision in this.
§ Mr. Cordleasked the Secretary of State for the Environment whether he will introduce legislation to impose on all local authorities a duty to inspect time switches in all street lighting at regular intervals, to remedy malfunctions speedily and to ensure that lighting is not unnecessarily used in daylight hours in order to avoid wastage of power.
§ Mr. CarmichaelNo. I am satisfied that the present arrangements for the maintenance of street lighting already provide for this.