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in PARLIAMENT
By Our Special Parliamentary Correspondent
The London Passenger Transport Bill.
BEFORE Parliament adjourned for Whitsuntide, Sir William M'Lintock, chartered accountant, who advised the Minister, of Transport regarding the • financial arrangements under the London Passenger Transport Bill, gave evidence in support of the Bill before the Joint Committee of both
Houses.
In 'explaining the arramgements to be made by the transport board. to meet the debts • of tramweds undertakings owned by the local authorities, the witness said that in the first year a sum of 11,056,158 would-fall to be paid for gross interest and redemption of
'' The beard Would. pay an annual interest charge out of re-Venue and instalments of principal. out of capital, raising its capital by the issue of stock.
A sinking -fund would have to be provided to redeem stock, and the period of 90 years was proposed in the Bill. That period had no reference to that during which existing loans would have to be repaid. It was. possible that, in the future the board would require fresh capital for new works altogether and in order to maintain its credit at a high level it was desirable that existing debts should meantime be liquidated. The revenue accruing from local authorities' undertakings would be adequate to meet the £467,749 which had been set down as the annual charge. He regarded it as imnossible to decide_ on the facts at present known whether local authorities would be likely to earn profits in the future sufficient to repay past losses borne by the ratepayers.
Transferring Bus Services.
RDEFERRING to bus services as. public-utility undertakings, the witness said lie did not know of any publicutility corporation that was earning comparable figures. There was no special financial provision, because the transfer ta the board was to be compulsory. He contended that the financial structure of the Bill was sound, provided the earnings were maintained. The unified direction of London transport would be to the ultimate benefit of the public and those who had invested their money in it.
Cross-examination for L.C.C.
CROSS-EXAMINED by Mr. E. Charteris for the L.C.C., witness said that he was instructed to prepare a scheme for the unification of traffic nu the basis that there would be no State grants and that the new authority would he self-supporting. He did not approach the undertakings of the local authorities on the commercial basis.
Counsei asked whether Sir William M'Lintock had ever prepared figures showing what would be the result of taking over those untiertakihgs on a commercial basis.
-Witness replied that earnings of some undertakings were insufficienton a commercial basis to justify the new board in assuming responsibility for, the debt, but in other cases the board Would, be 'justified in doing so. Taking the whole of the undertakings, he decided that the earnings would cover the annual debt provision which the board would require to make.
Not Profit-earning. •
COUNSEL : Have. you in dealing with the local authorities approached them from the point of view that they are or are not entitled to make profits? _ Witness: I understand that the local authorities' undertakings are not intended 'to make profits.
Witness added that he did not approach theni holding the view that they were not intended to niche Profits. He took the position as he found it.
.Asked whether the value of the assets was being ignored,' he. replied that the method of taking over the tramways undertakings must not proceed by reference to valuation, but if the debt were taken over the assets presumably were worth the amount of the debt. He maintained that the local authorities 'would get more out ofthe arrangements in the Bill than they would on a purely commercial basis. The Committee adjourned until June 4th.
Finance Bill Amendments.
ANUMBER of amendments relating to motor-vehicle duties has been Placed upon the paper for discussion when the Finance ill reaches the com' mittee stage. Sir Douglas Neivton and other memhers :Propose that a trench-eicavating machine used on a road for the purpose only of digging trenches and other like operations shall not be deemed to he a mechanically propelled vehiele used on a road.,
Major Glyn intends to move that Section 13 of the Finance Act,1928, relating to the licence duty on articulated motor vehicles, should be amended by adding the words but where such a vehicle is constructed so that the trailer is attached ,to the vehicle by partial superimposition in such manner as to cause a substantial part of the weight of the trailer to be borne by the vehicle, that vehicle shall not be deemed to be a vehicle used for drawing a trailer."
Support for New Clause. lUTAJOR GLYN, Sir Wm. Brass IlLand others support a new clause, declaring that where a licence has been taken out in respect of any mechanically propelled vehicle to which Section 12 and the Third Schedule of the Finance Act, 192S, and Section 6 of the Finance Act, 1930, apply, and during the currency of the licence the vehicle is equipPeel entirely with pneumatic tyres in place of solid tyres, the holder of the licence shall be entitled to repayment from the licensing authority of a pro portionate .amount of the licence duty for the remainder of the year, representing the difference. between. the, rate of duty oi a vehicle equipped entirely with pneumatics and one not thnS 'provided.
Passengers in Farmers' Wagons.
mIII; following is an amendment sup parted by Sir. ThomasInskip, the Duchess of Atlioll• and others, designed to meet the case of farmers' lorries and other 'vehicles being' Used to corivey adults and ehildren to rural functions
Notwithstanding anything t.toutttined litsub-section (3). of section 61-or in-section 67. of the Road Traffic Act) 1930, a. person shall not be required, to hold a public7service-yehicle licence for, any motor vehicle in respect of the use of
that vehicle— • •
".(a) for the conveyance without fee or reward of persons over 15 years of age ;
" (b) for the conveyance without fee or reward of children under 15 years of age. Provided that a motor vehicle for which no public-servicevehicle licence is held shall not be used for the conveyance of children under 15 years of age unless" (i) such children are aceora ponied by an adult having charge of them for the time being ; and "(ii) such adult bears a certificate, in a form to be approved by the Minister of Transport and signed by a magistrate, that he is satis fied that the motor vehicle may properly be so used."
A number of amendments has also been noted to reduce the petrol tax.
Restricting Horse Traffic. ON being-asked whetherthe Minister of Transport had now received the report of the London Traffic Advisory Committee, with regard to the repreasentations. Made by various bodies in connection with the restrictions:on horse-drawn vehicles proposed in the draftOxford -Street Regulatioria„ Mr. Parkinson, Parliamentary . Secretary, said' he' was informed that :lies Advisory Committee hadrecently had a meeting. -with representativesof the National,. Horse,. .Aasociatian, 4nd.. "of a number Of Other such organizations.
The. Minister, would, receive 'in due course a report from the committee on the representations made by those bodies, among other representatives and objections which had been received in respect of the proposed London Traffic (Oxford Street) Regulations.
Inconvenience to :Welsh Traffic.
REFERENCE has again been made to the expense and inconvenience caused by the circuitous route through small English villages which forms the only road between north and south Wales, and the Minister of Transport was asked whether a main direct trunk road between those two areas and wholly in Wales was contemplated.
Mr. Morrison pointed out that his predecessor caused a special survey to be made to find a satisfactory route. As a result a line had been chosen, ill co-operation with the highway authorities concerned, which followed for the most part existing roads in Glamorganshire, Carmarthenshire, Breconshire, Radnorshire and Montgomeryshire. Various improvements of the roadsembodiedin this route had been accepted under the trunk-road Programme.