Orders of the Day — Trunk Roads Bill

Part of the debate – in the House of Commons at 12:00 am on 8 November 1945.

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Photo of Major Sir Duncan McCallum Major Sir Duncan McCallum , Argyll 12:00, 8 November 1945

I do not apologise to the House for bringing the Debate back to the Cook's tour to which exception was taken by my hon. Friend the Member for Thirsk and Malton (Mr. Turton). I will endeavour, in the few minutes during which I wish to speak, to keep myself to what is actually in the Bill. It is true that in introducing the Bill the Minister said that out of the 3,600 miles of trunk roads to be taken over under the Bill only about 700 were in Scotland, but he hoped, and so do I, that in the course of time others will be included. Quite apart from the proposals of the Bill, hon. Members for Scottish constituencies will be aware that there is the Crofting Counties Road Scheme. I believe I am right in saying that the Minister has sanctioned it, or has asked the Scottish Office to sanction it, and that the scheme is soon to come into operation again to assist in the reconstruction of roadways in our Highland counties.

I should like to refer to one or two small points in the Bill. I regret that there is not a mention in it of piers and ferries. I particularly refer to piers because, on the big trunk roads which are mentioned in the Bill, are one or two piers which I hope will be included as part of the trunk road. They should be included. One hon. Member opposite rather took the line of twitting private enterprise. It is very easy and cheap to say that, owing to private enterprise, we have not proper and efficient ferries. I assure him that in the part of Scotland from which I come if it were not for private enterprise there would be no ferries at all. The only ferry which I know that has been taken over by the authorities is in such a deplorable condition that those, like myself, who travel in Scotland prefer to go over ferries run by private enterprise. But that is by the way. I admit that the ferries on the trunk roads should be taken over by the State as they are part and parcel of the roadways. It happens that some of our roads in Scotland lie across water, and we have to use steamers as well as motor cars.

Now I wish to make a reference to one or two roads in my constituency. There is one about which I believe the Ministry of War Transport have had considerable discussion and negotiation with our local authorities. On page 25 of the First Schedule is included a road beginning in Glasgow. It goes past Loch Lomond, through Tarbet and Inverary to a place called Lochgilphead. That road has been taken over as a trunk road, and the road from Lochgilphead to Oban is also to be included. We are very thankful that it is to be taken over. My local authority, by no means reactionary—it has only two landlords on it and the rest are all ordinary members of the community—are, however, very perturbed about this matter because there is another road from the same place, Lochgilphead, to Campbeltown, a road which is far more important than the last section of the road mentioned in the Bill. In the Explanatory Memoradum attached to the Bill it is stated that the roads specified in the First Schedule to the Bill not only connect the chief centres of industry and population with each other but with the most important ports, and…the more important food producing districts with their markets. The road to which I am now calling attention fulfils both those conditions. For the Highlands of Scotland, Campbeltown is an important port. It is a naval base and a base for the Fleet Air Arm. I am certain that if a census were taken now, or if one had been taken during the war years, of the traffic passing over that road from Lochgilphead to Campbeltown and the result had been compared with the traffic passing on the other road, it would show that the road from Lochgilphead to Campbeltown is equally important with the trunk road which has been taken over by the Ministry of War Transport. I suggest that the Minister should reconsider this matter and should include in the Schedule the road from Lochgilphead to Campbeltown as one of his main trunk roads. It is certainly one of the most important roads in the Western Highlands.

In one answer that has been given to the local authorities on this matter I believe the Ministry stated something to this effect, "If we include this road, we shall have to include a road in Wigtownshire which goes to Stranraer and Portpatrick." Well, why not? They are both very important roads. I ask that when the Bill is in its Committee stage the Minister might consider moving an Amendment to include also the above-mentioned important road. The road is the more important today because the passenger steamer service between Campbeltown and Glasgow has been suspended and the air service has been cut down. The road is our only means of connection between Campbeltown, with its tremendous landings of fish and naval and agricultural frame, and Glasgow. I ask him to include this road in the Schedule, but I do not ask him to extract from the Schedule the road which is now there.