LONDON’S FUTURE POPULATION

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22371, 7 April 1938, Page 11

LONDON’S FUTURE POPULATION

10,750,000 IN 1951 7 LONDON, March 4. Figures prepared by Sir Charles Bressey, of the Ministry of Transport, of the recent and estimated future population of London wete disclosed yesterday before the Royal Commission on the Distribution of the Industrial Population. They were: 1931, 9,500,000; 1941, 10,350,000; 1951. 10 750,000; 1961, 10,700,000; 1971, 10,700,000. Mr Frank Pick, vice-chairman or the London Passenger Transport Board, who was giving evidence at the time, commented: “I should say those figures are based on the natural increment of the population.” . Sir Montague Barlow, the chairman, replied that Sir Charles did not visualise a 12,000,000 population, as mentioned by Mr Pick at a previous hearing- ~ Mr Pick added that transport could not keep pace with a London extending beyond a limit of 12 miles from Charing Cross. .. . “If London develops beyond that, the means of transport on which it depends will be inadequate,” he said. “There will always be standing passengers at the peak hours,” he stated in reply to another question. Later be declared: “There is a point at which people will no longer stand.” The commission later discussed m private with Mr Herbert Morrison, leader of the L.C.C., and Sir Georg Gater, the clerk, the evidence which thev had submitted for the council dealing with London’s fire danger m the event of air attacks.

The L.C.C.’s views were: Risk of fire in war-time would be reduced by scattering industrial premises as far as possible. . hj Fire fighting services . must ue strengthened to meet the risk of «n ous destruction by incendiary bombs. The existing water supplies irugnt be inadequate for fire, fighting m industrial areas in war-time. - In war conditions normal cqmmum cations essential to fire fighting services might be seriously dislocated.