Parliament and the Bridge Aften ten years of exhausting controversy
concerning Waterloo Bridge (in which Mr. Baldwin, as Prime Minister, 'found it necessary to intervene, a Royal Com. mission sat and reported, and Parliament finally arrived at a decision) the new Socialist London County Council has thought fit to reverse the plan and invite Parliament to change its mind. This prolonged dispute having been settled in favour of preserving the famous bridge, which was designed to harmonize with the splendid proportions of Somerset House and the background on the East, the new attempt to upset the decisions thus laborimisly reached has met with the appropriate reply from the Minister of Transport—that he cannot make a grant to. any scheme running contrary to the expressed opinion of Parliament. The Socialist leader now confi- dently "ipeaks of inducing Parliament to change its verdict. But why should it ? There' is not a single one of the arguments which he adduces as " new " which has not already been thrashed out in extenso, and disposed of. The river Users' case has' been fully considered. It has' already been concluded that the additional traffic over- the 'proposed six-line bridge would "congest the approaches. The decision to conserve Rennie's fine stricture -by " no means hinders the building of a new one ; but the latter should be in the place where it is supremely' needed, at a pivotal point in the re-planning 'of London-1.-at Charing Cross.
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