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certain neighbouring areas in the Counties of Essex, Kent, Surrey and
Middlesex.
59. The Bill also provided that the County Council might apply
for a Provisional Order to enable them to supply energy to any district
within the area of supply in which no supply was afforded, and would
authorise the Council and any Companies authorised to supply energy
to agree for the supply by or to the Council of energy in bulk or
otherwise.
60. The Bill would also authorise the County Council to acquire
the local undertaking of any of the scheduled distributors except the
undertakings vested in the Borough Councils of St. Marylebone and
Woolwich.
61. The Council petitioned against the Bill on the grounds that
whilst admitting that legislation was required, as the development of
electricity in London was backward, it was not desirable that the
County Council should become an authority to supply electricity in bulk
or otherwise; that the scheme was ill-considered ; that the proposed
area of supply was too large ; that the proposal to purchase the undertakings
of the local authorities would involve a large expenditure of
public money without adequate return, the generating works of some
of the local authorities being probably of less commercial value than
the outstanding debts and liabilities; that in the hands of the County
Council the undertaking would result in a loss, which under the
provisions of the Bill was to be made good out of the County Rate ;
and that the undertaking should be established and carried on as a
commercial undertaking, the County Council to be the controlling or
supervising authority as in the Electric Lighting Acts.
62. The Bill was read a second time in the House of Commons
and referred to a Committee, with an instruction that if any power
was conferred upon the London County Council to transfer or lease to
any company, local authority, body or person any of the powers, duties
or liabilities entrusted to it by the Bill, the conditions upon which
such power should be exercised should be embodied in the Bill or in a
subsequent Bill. After a lengthy enquiry the Committee reported
against the Bill.