Responsibilities
The council's responsibilities included: * advising the Secretary of State for Energy on matters relating to the electricity supply industry in England and Wales * helping the Electricity Boards in England and Wales to improve efficiency * advising on theCorporate structure
Background
In 1954, six years after nationalisation, the government appointed the Herbert Committee to examine the efficiency and organisation of the electricity industry. The committee found that the ''British Electricity Authority''s dual roles of electricity generation and supervision had led to central concentration of responsibility and to duplication between headquarters and divisional staff which led to delays in the commissioning of new stations. The committee’s recommendations were enacted by the Electricity Act 1957 which established the Electricity Council to oversee the industry and the CEGB with responsibility for generation and transmission.Constitution
The Electricity Council was established by Section 3 of the ''Electricity Act 1957''. It comprised a chairman, two deputy chairmen, and up to three other independent people appointed by the Minister of Power. It also included the chairman and two full-time members of the ''Central Electricity Generating Board''. The remaining members were the twelve chairmen of area electricity boards. The chairmen of the Electricity Council were: * Sir Henry Self (1890–1975), 1 January 1958 – 31 August 1959 * Sir (Clifford) Robertson King (1895–1974), 1 September 1959 – 1 December 1961 * Professor Sir Ronald Stanley Edwards (1910–1976), 1 January 1962 – 1 October 1968 * Sir Norman Randall Elliott, 1 November 1968 – 1 March 1972 * Sir Peter Menzies (1912–1988), 1 April 1972 – 31 March 1977 * Sir Francis L. Tombs (1924– 2020), 1 April 1977 – 30 November 1980 * Sir Austin Wyeth Bunch (1918–2008), 1 January 1981 – 31 March 1983 * Sir (Thomas) Philip Jones (1931–2000), 1 April 1983 – 31 March 1989. The full membership of the Electricity Council, as first constituted, was as follows. * Chairman: Sir Henry Self. * Deputy Chairman: Sir Josiah Eccles. * Deputy Chairman Professor R. S. Edwards. * Other Members: Lord Citrine; C. T. Melling. * Representing the CEGB: Sir Christopher Hinton. * Representing the Area Boards ** North Eastern: T. M. Ayres ** Yorkshire: D. Bellamy ** Southern: R. R. B. Brown ** North Western: T. E. Daniel ** South Eastern: Norman Elliott ** South Wales: W. A. Gallon ** South Western: A. N. Irens ** London: D. B. Irving ** Mersey and North Wales: D. H. Kendon ** Midlands: W. S. Lewis ** East Midlands: N. F. Marsh ** Eastern: H. V. Pugh Chief Officers of the Council * Secretary and Solicitor: R. A. Finn * Deputy Secretary: W. B. Noddings * Deputy Legal Advisor: L. H. Kent * Assistant Secretary (Administration): C. M. de L. Byrde * Financial Advisor: A. M. Scott * Deputy Financial Advisor: C. A. French * Deputy Financial Advisor: F. A. Rawlings * Commercial and Development Advisor: W. B. Noddings * Deputy Commercial and Development Advisor: R. Y. Sanders * Industrial Relations Advisor: D. G. Dodds * Deputy Industrial Relations Advisor: R. D. V. Roberts * Chairman of Superannuation Schemes: David Moffat * Establishments Officer: E. Landucci * Press and Information Advisor: G. Morley Davies Later members of the council included: P. Briggs, Sir Henry Douglas, Josiah Eccles, Lord Geddes of Epsom, P.A. Lingard, N.F. Marsh, R.D.V Roberts, and Sir Alan Wilson.Organisation
The organisational structure (see above) comprised departments headed by an advisor. By 1967 these were: Secretarial/Legal (J.A. Wedgwood), Financial (C.A. French), Industrial Relations (no-one in post) and Commercial (L.F. Robson). In 1978 new departments were created for Public Relations, Marketing and Engineering. The headquarters were in London, initially in Trafalgar Buildings in Charing Cross Road, then in the 1960s at Millbank Tower. For liaison with the Area Electricity Boards outstation offices were established such as in Bristol. The EC training establishment was at Horsley Towers, Surrey. There were 535 staff in 1959, 1083 in 1967, and 1257 in 1989. In 1969 the government proposed to reconstitute the Electricity Council and rename it the Electricity Authority with "new powers to plan and control the policy of the industry as a whole". The proposals were embodied in the ''Electricity Bill 1970,'' however Parliament was dissolved in May 1970 and the bill lapsed.Operations
In 1965 the Electricity Council Research Centre was established atPublications
* The Electricity Council, ''Annual Report and accounts'' (Various dates), The Electricity Council, London. * The Electricity Council, ''Lightning Protection of Distribution Networks'', The Electricity Council, London, n.d. * The Electricity Council, ''A History of Electricity Supply'', E.C. Library Reading List No, 8. * The Electricity Council, ''Historical Development of Electric Power Generation and Supply in Great Britain'', E.C. Intelligence Branch Bibliography B25. * The Electricity Council, ''Some Landmarks in the History of the Electricity Supply Industry'', E.C. Intelligence Branch Reference Paper. * The Electricity Council, ''Power for the Future'', The Electricity Council, London, 1958. * The Electricity Council, ''Lighting in industry'' (Electricity and productivity series; no.2), The Electricity Council, London, 1967. * The Electricity Council, ''Electric Farming'', The Electricity Council, London, 1969. * The Electricity Council, ''Electric growing'', The Electricity Council, London, 1972. * The Electricity Council, ''Growing rooms: A guide to the practical design of installations'' (Grow electric handbook), The Electricity Council, 1975. * The Electricity Council, ''Farmelectric Handbook 23: Vegetable storage: A Guide to the Practical Design of Installations'', The Electricity Council, Kennilworth, 1975. * The Electricity Council, ''Farmelectric Handbook'', at least 23 volumes, The Electricity Council, Kennilworth, various date 1970s. * The Electricity Council, ''Automatic feeding of cattle: A guide to the practical design of installations'' (Farmelectric handbook), The Electricity Council, The Centre, 1975. * The Electricity Council, ''Handbook of Electricity Supply Statistics'', The Electricity Council, London, 1979. * The Electricity Council, ''British Nuclear Achievements'', The Electricity Council, London, 1979. * The Electricity Council, ''Electricity Supply in the United Kingdom. A Chronology - from the beginnings of the industry to 31 December 1985,'' The Electricity Council, London, 1987. * The Electricity Council, ''Handbook of Electricity Supply Statistics'', The Electricity Council, London, 1989. * The Electricity Council (ed), ''Power System Protection. Vol 1: Principles and Components, Vol 2: Systems and methods, Vol 3: Applications''. Institution of Engineering & Technology, London, 1989.Privatisation
Upon privatisation of the UK electricity industry in 1989–90 many of the functions of the Electricity Council were no longer needed. A residuary body the Electricity Association continued for a few years. The property, rights and liabilities of the Electricity Council were transferred to three nominated successor companies: the Electricity Association,See also
*References