"ROLLING STOCK STARVED"

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22520, 30 September 1938, Page 12

"ROLLING STOCK STARVED"

MAINTENANCE OF i RAILWAYS MINISTER REPLIES TO " THE PRESS " "In an editorial to-day 'The Press' aimed to disprove a statement made by me at my New Brighton meeting last Saturday concerning the provision made by the previous National Government for the maintenance of rolli ing stock for the railways compared with the provision made by the Labour Government: but "The Press' in the end disproves its own case and proves mine." said the Minister for Railways, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, in an address at Darfield last night. ,"The Press" had taken exception to I his statement that under the Coalition Government the rolling stock had been starved, and that the nominal net revenue had been made out of the pockets of the workers, and by running the rolling stock "off its wheels." and it looked as if the Coalition Government had been determined to allow 'the railway system to cease to exist, except in skeleton form, declared the Minister. The article then quoted the respective amounts spent on rolling stock by the two Governments, stating that in the four years ended March 31, 1936, the total amount spent was £5,051,585—an average of £1,262,986 a year, he said. For the two years ended March 31, 1938, the total was £3,357,645 —an average of £1,678,822. Mr Sullivan said that while the editorial went on to try to explain away the significance of these comparative figures it had been an admission that the Labour Government had expended nearly £416,000 a year more than its predecessors in the maintenance of the rolling stock. The statement that less mileage was run under the Coalition Government than under the present Government and that this justified a smaller expenditure on maintenance was, he said, equivalent to an admission that the railway service was on the way to being reduced to a skeleton service

Wages and Maintenance

In support of his statement the Minister said that in the four years of its administration the previous Government, through the Railways. Board, had earned net revenue amounting to £3,861,586. To do that it reduced the wages and salaries of the workers it employed during the four years .by £2,175,000. It also reduced the provision for maintenance and efficiency during that period by £ 1,786,000. These savings in wages and maintenance amounted to £3,961,000 against the £3,861,000 net revenue earned. ."Notwithstanding the editorial attempt to discount my public statement that the rolling stock had been starved under the administration of the Railways Board, it is perfectly obvious to all associated with the board that what I have said is a conservative estimate of the position," said Mr Sullivan.

The rigid and ruthless economy ex-! ercised by the board was disclosed, he said, by the actual instructions that were issued by the Government to '.' ©> .board and by the general manager to Tiis subordinate officers. In February, 1931, divisional superintendents and all district officers of the traffic and maintenance branches were instructed that "the estimates should be based on the assumption that the most rigid economy must be exercised "throughout the financial year, and that the policy concerning expenditure which has been in operation during the last few months will be continued." But in March, 1931, not satisfied with what