Mr Nigel Fisher: I hope the hon. and learned Member for Hornchurch (Mr. Bing) will forgive me if I do not follow him in his argument, because I wish, rather, to deal with the administrative efficiency, or otherwise, of British Railways. I think I shall be able to show the House that "otherwise" is the operative word. We are dealing with a Bill conferring extensive powers on the British Transport Commission....
Mr Nigel Fisher: After all that discussion I feel that I must start my speech over again. However, I promise that I will not double the length of it on that account. As I understand the Ruling, we are allowed to refer to the administration of the railways, and I propose very briefly to quote one or two more examples on this point of administration. Another constituent, a Mr. Swinscow, says: It would be an...
Mr Nigel Fisher: I hope hon. Members opposite will wait, because he goes on: But then a steady decline set in and this last few months have been worse than anything. Here is another point. The same correspondent, in another letter, says: Coach No. 88357 has been running on this line with a steam leak for several weeks since Christmas.…The upholstery was sodden and the door so swollen that only a strong man...
Mr Nigel Fisher: They are all gentlemen in my constituency. I appreciate that individual complaints may be misleading. But many constituents have gone further and kept careful records of time-keeping over long periods. The Christmas period was the worst. The 5.39 p.m. train arrived 46 minutes late every day for a week on a journey of 30 miles. The 5.52 p.m. train arrived 75 minutes late every day from 18th...
Mr Nigel Fisher: I called it the "non-stop businessman's flier." It is supposed to be very fast and it does not stop on the journey.
Mr Nigel Fisher: That is an extremely funny remark, but as a matter of fact I am coming to that point a little later. I do not claim that this particular service was ever a very good one. In fact, the poor service in Hertfordshire is a reason why it has remained so unspoiled and countrified a county. People could not tolerate this sort of thing and went to live elsewhere. After all, they had to get to their...
Mr Nigel Fisher: The unpunctuality of these trains leads, on occasions, to very unjust allegations. There was some criticism recently at Letchworth of their Majesties the King and Queen. It was rumoured that delays on the railways were due to the Royal departure for Sandringham. I was sure that this was untrue and I wrote to British Railways for the facts. I should like to quote from the reply which was...
Mr Nigel Fisher: I am sorry to intervene so soon again, but the distance between King's Cross and Hitchin is 30 miles, and it should not be necessary to sleep on such a short run.
Mr Nigel Fisher: One can use the word in two connotations. Surely the hon. Gentleman knows which is which?
Mr Nigel Fisher: Not in my constituency.
Mr Nigel Fisher: asked the Minister of Transport when, and to what extent, he proposes to implement the findings of the Traffic Advisory Committee on traffic congestion in London.
Mr Nigel Fisher: While I am glad to hear the Minister say that, might I ask whether he will consider carrying out as quickly as possible those recommendations which do not involve the expenditure of large sums of money?
Mr Nigel Fisher: asked the Minister of Transport if, in view of local representations, he will reconsider his refusal to confirm the Hertfordshire County Council traffic regulation for the institution of one-way traffic in Bear Lane, Ashwell.
Mr Nigel Fisher: Will the right hon. Gentleman bear in mind that this is a very narrow lane, with no footpath and with a high wall on both sides, and also that the people of this village, the local parish council and the Hertfordshire County Council all demand a one-way scheme?. In those circumstances, why should a Whitehall official with no knowledge of the local conditions be allowed to overrule all other...
Mr Nigel Fisher: asked the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement following the discussions recently concluded between his Department and the trade delegation from Spain.
Mr Nigel Fisher: Would the right hon. Gentleman not agree that despite the political policy of the Government towards Spain it is undeniable that the interests of both countries would be served by increased commercial relations? Could he not give the House a little more detail about the scope and character of the recent negotiations?
Mr Nigel Fisher: asked the Minister of Food whether, in the interests of public health, the use of preservatives will be permitted in cream, the sale of which he has recently authorised.
Mr Nigel Fisher: Why not? Why does the right hon. Gentleman allow the use, for instance, of borax as a preservative in margarine and other food products? Why not for cream, too? Why is there this confusion and these variations of policy between the different sections of his Ministry?
Mr Nigel Fisher: asked the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs what consultations have taken place between his Department and the American State Department on the question of a closer association between Spain and the Atlantic Pact countries.
Mr Nigel Fisher: Would the hon. Gentleman not agree that in this case it would have been better if there had been consultations before two directly conflicting statements of policy were made, as, indeed, they were, and is the hon. Gentleman's own deplorable speech on the Adjournment last week the last word in Government policy on this matter? There is no coordination at all.