Sir Ian Fraser: The nation does well to consider, at the end of ten years, what progress has been made in this extraordinarily important field. Therefore, I praise the House of Commons for having put upon its Order Paper this subject for debate today. I add my appreciation of the speeches made by the right hon. Member for Llanelly (Mr. J. Griffiths) and my hon. Friend the Joint Parliamentary Secretary, who...
Sir Ian Fraser: None the less true. I want to ask the Minister to do one small thing, and that is to see whether he can pay these new entrants who come into the scheme today through a bank, if they want to be paid that way. I draw my war pension through a bank. Why should not they draw theirs that way? It may be very convenient for them. It seems to me very old-fashioned to shut one's eyes to the fact that...
Sir Ian Fraser: I am sorry about that. I thought that I heard the right hon. Member for Llanelly (Mr. J. Griffiths) begin his speech, but it may be that I missed the first paragraph. I may have been five minutes late. I therefore withdraw that remark altogether and I beg pardon for having made it. There are three aspects of the war pension—the basic rate, the special allowances and the widow's pension....
Sir Ian Fraser: May I ask my right hon. Friend if, while obviously in some cases the local interest must give way to the national interest in this matter, he and the authority concerned will bear in mind that the local people will take such a drastic thing as the closure of a local line much more readily if two criteria are borne in mind; namely, first, that real economy is effected by the closure, and,...
Sir Ian Fraser: asked the Prime Minister if he will make a statement about his visit to the United States of America.
Sir Ian Fraser: Has not my right hon. Friend's visit done a great deal to enhance British prestige? On the economic side, was the broadening of the basis of world trade one of the matters which he discussed, including particularly the raising of the price of gold?
Sir Ian Fraser: asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food whether he will make a statement about meat supplies in the London area arising out of current industrial disputes.
Sir Ian Fraser: Is it true that, notwithstanding the partial breakdown of distribution in London, considerable supplies of meat have been coming in from all round, through many channels, and is this attributable to the fact that distribution of meat is in the hands of private enterprise rather than under central control?
Sir Ian Fraser: Before the hon. Gentleman finishes, would he not include the bowler hat which is worn by the builder's foreman—and also, for that matter, by the ex-officer who gets the sack; it protects him against the coldness and difficulties of civil life?
Sir Ian Fraser: asked the Minister of Transport and Civil Aviation whether he will increase the grants paid on approved lighting schemes on trunk roads to such an extent as will exempt the parishes through which they pass from all financial obligations.
Sir Ian Fraser: Is it not begging the question to say that the powers of a parish council are permissive? Surely no trunk road can be allowed to continue at the whim and fancy of a parish council without proper lighting? If it must be lighted to a high standard in order, to ensure the safety of the public, is that not mainly national expenditure?
Sir Ian Fraser: asked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs if he will consider using his powers, or taking powers, to pay for street lighting on trunk roads from central funds, thus relieving parishes of financial obligations which are beyond their means.
Sir Ian Fraser: Yes, Sir, but is not it a fact that a parish council is a small and poor local government unit, that it is really only capable of lighting village streets, and that, when it is required to light on the standard of a main road, it should have much more help from the central Government in the national interest?
Sir Ian Fraser: asked the Paymaster-General if he will state the position of coal stocks compared with this time last year; and to what extent the prospect of removing coal rationing has now improved.
Sir Ian Fraser: Will my hon. Friend consider and, if thought fit, recommend to his right hon. Friend the Chancellor that it would pay the nation to apply the principle of the investment allowance to industry, and even to private persons in their dwellings, so as to encourage the purchase of closed stoves which will burn with great efficiency the fuel which is available in such large quantities?
Sir Ian Fraser: My first note was to thank the hon. Member for Lowestoft (Mr. Edward Evans) for having initiated the debate in this House last December, and I do so in spite of the very ungenerous and, to some extent, inaccurate speech which he has made today. I still feel that we are indebted to him for having raised this subject and given us the opportunity of a five-hour debate last December following the...
Sir Ian Fraser: I will confine myself to my original intention to thank the hon. Member for Lowestoft for having initiated the debate last December which lasted five hours and which gave us such a fine opportunity to discuss the admirable recommendations of the Piercy Report. There are all sorts of things which we can still do for disabled people, but Britatin can be proud of the way in which during the...
Sir Ian Fraser: The hon. Member used some qualifying word of that sort. I forget the word he used, but it was to the effect that the Bill had been received coldly.
Sir Ian Fraser: I think that, on the contrary, it is a testimony to Mr. Ernest Bevin and those of that day, in all quarters of the House, that the Act has worked so well and that there is not left any large statutory Measure which could be taken to help the disabled. It does not follow that there is not much to do for them, but it can be done with existing legislation brought up to date and made more...
Sir Ian Fraser: He needs to see just enough for that; it is very obvious, is it not? If he is a railway engine driver, on the other hand, a vey small degree of disability puts him out of that particular job. It is good, therefore, that the best possible information should be had on the question whether a person really will be disabled for twelve months or for a substantial period of time—one must take...