HC Deb 21 March 1978 vol 946 cc515-6W
Mr. Ford

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements have been made to review policy on granting support for advanced ground transport following the report of the Select Committee on Science and Technology and the White Paper on advanced ground transport (Command Paper No. 6825).

Mr. William Rodgers

The Planning and Transport Research Advisory Council has been asked to review annually Government policy on advanced ground transport. To do this, the council has set up a working group chaired by Dr. A. H. Chilver, Vice-Chancellor of Cranfield Institute of Technology. Members of the working group are:

  • Mr. F. H. Beasant, BSc, CEng, FIEE, FIMechE. (Director General, British Rail Industrial Export Group, and formerly Chairman of Brush Electrical Machines Ltd.)
  • Professor J. F. Eastham. (School of Electrical Engineering, University of Bath.)
  • Dr. L. Goldstone. (Department of Industry.)
  • Dr. A. J. M. Hitchcock. (Departments of the Environment and Transport.)
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  • Miss A. M. Lees, BArch, RIBA, DipTP, FRTPI, FRSA. (County Planning Officer, Merseyside County Council.)
  • Dr. David Quarmby. (Executive Member, Planning, London Transport.)
  • Mr. A. H. Wickens, BSc(Eng), CEng, FIMechE, MRAeS. (Director of Laboratories, British Rail, Derby.)

The group held its first meeting on 2nd February and approved the following terms of reference which were subsequently endorsed by the Planning and Transport Research Advisory Council at its meeting on 23rd February:

  1. 1. To consider the future relevance and market potential for AGT both in United Kingdom and overseas; taking account of present achievements and future potential of other technologies;
  2. 2. and in doing so, to consider the current state-of-the-art and future potential of new technology in AGT;
  3. 3. in the light of the above, to report annually to the Council reviewing policy on Government support for AGT research and development.

The group proposes to make its first annual report to the council early in 1979. The council reports annually to Ministers in the spring, and these reports are published in the Department's annual research and development report.