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Urban Council and the Promoting Company
At Wednesday night's meeting of the Rushden Urban Council, one of the chief questions discussed was the action which the Council should take to the application of the County of Northampton Electric Power and Traction Company for a Provisional Order for the supply of electricity in the district. The attitude of the Council has been rather antagonistic to the proposal, but the Company asked to be allowed to send representatives to wait on the Council, and the request was acceded to. Two representatives of the Company were now in attendance, and explained the provisions of the order to be asked for.
Chief interest centred in the replies of the representatives to questions by members of the Council.
In reply to the Chairman, the representatives said the Company would be prepared to give the Council
Special Terms for Street Lighting.
Full particulars of the supply and distribution of current in Rushden would be submitted, and the cost of re-instating the roads after laying the mains would be paid by the Company, who would also bear the cost of necessary supervision of the work of re-instatement. The periodical revision of the charges made for current was provided for by the Act of Parliament. The Company would be prepared to give the Council the option of purchase of the concern at the end of 10, 15, 20, 25, or 30 years, at a price to be agreed upon.
Mr Ballard considered that Wellingborough was very poorly lighted by the Company, and that Rushden had a much better light from incandescent gas.
The Company's representatives pointed out that at Wellingborough the street lighting was not in the Company's hands, but was managed by the Urban Council, whose fittings were obsolete. The lighting in private houses was alright.
Particulars were then given by the representatives as to the relative cost of the works at Bedford, Northampton, Kettering, and Wellingborough. From the figures given, it appeared that the establishment charges and cost of current at Wellingborough, where the Company was established, were the lowest. It was argued that, as a consequence, consumers were
Better Served by a Private Company
than by a municipality.
Further questions were then asked and answered, among them the following:-
Mr Swindall: If we do not oppose you, would you be prepared to grant Rushden a share in the profits? - No, I think not. We are not philanthropists. (Hear, hear.)
Mr Swindall: But you get a monopoly of the town, and I think you ought to pay for it. - No, we do not get a monopoly, because if we do not conduct our business properly another company can come in.
The Chairman: Your affiliated company at Tottenham share the profits. - If that is so, I would point out that this is not Tottenham.
Mr Swindall: Would you be prepared to supply Rushden in bulk if we wished to distribute the current ourselves? Well, I think not, and you could not supply consumers as cheaply as we could.
Mr Mantle: If you get the order, shall you go on with it? - Certainly.
Mr Skinner: Do you mean to
Go in for the Trams?
Well, we are working in this way with the idea of resuscitating that scheme.
The Company's representatives then retired.
Mr Bazeley thought the matter should be deferred, and that inquiries should be made at Wellingborough and Kettering. From information he had received from Kettering, he was strongly in favour of opposing a Company, and going in for a provisional order themselves. If the town got into the hands of the Company, the latter would be a nuisance in various ways, and if the town wished to purchase the works they would have to do so at the Company's price. At Kettering, since the introduction of electricity, the price of gas had gone down, and in that way the townspeople had been saved about £2,000, That more than covered what loss there had been on the electric undertaking, and at the present time the electric installation was going on very well. He moved that the question be referred to a committee, to inquire into and report.
Mr Bates seconded the motion.
Mr Denton did not think they would get
The Town at the Back of Them
if they decided to go in for a scheme of their own.
Mr Dobbs: Anything is better than getting into the hands of this Company.
Mr Skinner: Would they allow this Company to come if we did not want them?
The Chairman: I think it is a question of either doing the work ourselves or allowing them to come. One or the other has to be done.
In reply to a question, the Clerk said the cost of obtaining a provisional order for the Council would be about £130.
The motion was carried, and a committee, consisting of the Chairman, and Messrs Swindal, Bazeley, Ballard, and Dobbs, was appointed.
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