§ Mr. Emeryasked the Minister of Power whether he will list the actual annual borrowing from the Consolidated Fund, the repayments made, the dates and amounts of increases in borrowing powers authorised by Parliament and the total outstanding debt for each of the last fifteen years for the National Coal Board, the Electricity Council, the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board, the Gas 386W Council and the Atomic Energy Authority.
§ Mr. FreesonThe North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board is a matter for the Secretary of State for Scotland; the Atomic Energy Authority is a matter for the Minister of Technology. The figures for the National Coal Board, the Electricity Council and the Gas Council are as follows:—
NATIONAL COAL BOARD £ million Advances during year from the Consolidated Fund* Repayments made during year Total debt to the Consolidated Fund outstanding at end of year† NATIONAL COAL BOARD 1952 31.4 0.2 63.4 1953 41.6 0.4 104.7 1954 54.7 0.6 158.8 1955 89.4 1.0 247.2 1956 14.5 — 261.7 1957 89.1 1.5 349.3 1958 135.9 6.8 478.4 1959 117.2 10.5 585.0 1960 51.9 15.6 621.4 1961 -15.6 — 605.8 1962 27.7 18.7 614.9 1963–64 55.1 81.6 588.4 1964–65 81.0 43.8 625.6 1965–66 300 — 575.1 1966–67 531 15.5 612.7
ELECTRICITY COUNCIL 1956–57 148.0 — 148.0 1957–58 123.0 5.9 265.1 1958–59 139.0 10.8 393.2 1959–60 206.0 16.4 582.8 1960–61 178.0 24.6 736.2 1961–62 223.0 31.8 927.4 1962–63 233.0 40.7 1,119.8 1963–64 300.0 50.0 1,369.8 1964–65 379.0 62.0 1,686.8 1965–66 372.0 77.2 1,981.6 1966–67 489.0 92.0 2,378.6
GAS COUNCIL 1956–57 24.0 — 24.0 1957–58 32.0 1.0 55.0 1958–59 25.0 2.2 77.8 1959–60 29.0 3.2 103.6 1960–61 24.0 4.4 123.2 1961–62 18.0 5.4 135.8 1962–63 27.0 6.1 156.7 1963–64 76.0 7.2 225.6 1964–65 60.0 10.2 275.4 1965–66 74.0 12.6 336.8 1966–67 180.0 15.6 501.2 Borrowings were made within statutory limits‡ enacted for the industries from time to time as follows: National Coal Board, 3rd July 1951: £300 million, 2nd August 1956: £650 million, 22nd March 1960: £700 million, 22nd December 1965: £700 millions‡, 20th July 1967: £750 million; Electricity Council, 30th July 1954: £1,400 million, 387W 1st January 1958: £1,400 million§, 25th March 1959: £1,800 million, 15th December 1961: £2,300 million, 18th December 1963: £3,300 million, 5th November 1966: £4,100 million; Gas Colwell, 30th July 1954: £450 million, 13th April 1960: £500 million, 15th August 1963: £525 million, 18th December 1963: £600 million, 21st December 1964: £650 million, 5th August 1965: £900 million, 1st July 1967: £1,200 million.
* The years for which the figures are given are the industries' accounting years. In 1963 the N.C.B. changed from a calendar year to a financial year basis so that, for them, 1963–64 is a period of fifteen months.
†The figures for the advances to and the debt of the N.C.B. do not include the cash element in the payments of compensation for vested assets made in the first few years covered in the table.
†The statutory limits on borrowing do not include the sums issued in stock or, in the case of the N.C.B., partly in cash, by way of compensation for assets that vested on nationalisation. In the case of the National Coal Board, since the passage of the Coal Industry Act 1965 which authorised a reduction of the Board's capital (which accounts for the discontinuity in the run of figures), no distinction is made between vested and post-vested assets and all debt counts against the limit. In addition to the outstanding debt to the Exchequer the following items also count against the limit: Stock Issues (other than Compensation Stock) and temporary borrowings from the clearing banks, and, in the case of the N.C.B. the Exchequer. The N.C.B.s temporary borrowings from the Exchequer have been included in the figures given above.
§ Under the Electricity Act 1957, the Electricity Council, on the dissolution of the Central Electricity Authority, was initially made subject to the same borrowing limit as the Authority.