§ 24. Mr. Hooleyasked the Minister of Power whether he will give a general direction, in the public interest, to electricity boards to consult him before making agreements to supply current to private industry below the average price per unit paid to the Central Electricity Generating Board.
§ Mr. MarshNo, Sir. The costs of supplying electricity vary with the pattern of consumption, and Boards should remain free to reflect this variation in the prices charged.
§ Mr. HooleyIs my right hon. Friend aware that a public quarrel has broken out between the electricity board and a major industrial consumer? Would it not be in the public interest that there should be some considered public policy on the price for bulk supplies which may have implications on the capital programmes of the electricity industry?
§ Mr. MarshThe new structure of the bulk supply tariff will encourage a better relationship between costs and prices. In the past, rebates given for restrictable supplies may have been, to put it no higher, excessive in relation to the cost of capacity for meeting peak loads.