§ Mr. Stanleyasked the Secretary of State for Transport what was the amount of Government grant paid towards the costs of the commuter rail services in the London and South-East area in 1975 and 1976; and what is the estimated amount for 1977.
§ Mr. William RodgersUnder the Railways Act 1974 support for rail passenger operations is for the system as a whole. It is not separately calculated for individual business sectors such as London and the South-East. These services are undoubtedly responsible for a considerable part of the Government support required for the Railways. I would refer the hon. Member to the information about this given in paragraph 7.19 of Volume 1 of the Government's consultation document on Transport Policy, published in April 1976.