Electricity Act 1957

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Electricity Act 1957
Act of Parliament
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government, 1952-2022).svg
Long title An Act to provide for the dissolution of the Central Electricity Authority and the establishment of a Central Electricity Generating Board and an Electricity Council, and for the transfer of functions of the said Authority to that Board or Council or to the Minister of Power; to make further provision as to other matters relating to the supply of electricity; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid.
Citation 5 & 6 Eliz. 2. c. 48
Dates
Royal assent 17 July 1957
Repealed31 March 1990
Other legislation
Repealed by Electricity Act 1989
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted

The Electricity Act 1957 (repealed 1989) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom. The principal impact of the Act was the dissolution of the Central Electricity Authority, which it replaced with the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) and the Electricity Council. [1]

Contents

The Electricity Act 1947, which nationalised the industry, set up the British Electricity Authority (BEA) and 14 area boards; it also established a consultative council for each of the area boards. Two of the area boards served the south of Scotland. These were formed, together with the BEA's generation activities in the region, into the South of Scotland Electricity Board (SSEB) by the Electricity Reorganisation (Scotland) Act 1954, under which the BEA was renamed the Central Electricity Authority. The north of Scotland has been served since 1943 by the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board (NSHEB).

The principal innovation of the Electricity Act 1957 was the Electricity Council; however, this Act also turned the Central Electricity Authority into the Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB).

The statutory bodies created by it had the following key responsibilities:

See also

Related Research Articles

The Central Electricity Generating Board (CEGB) was responsible for electricity generation, transmission and bulk sales in England and Wales from 1958 until privatisation of the electricity industry in the 1990s.

The British Electricity Authority (BEA) was established as the central British electricity authority in 1948 under the nationalisation of Great Britain's electricity supply industry enacted by the Electricity Act 1947. The BEA was responsible for the generation, transmission and sale of electricity to area electricity boards, and the development and maintenance of an efficient, coordinated and economical system of electricity supply.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) was a body that managed and operated the electricity supply industry in England and Wales between 1 April 1955 and 31 December 1957. The CEA replaced the earlier British Electricity Authority (BEA) as a result of the Electricity Reorganisation (Scotland) Act 1954, which moved responsibility for Scottish electricity supply to the Scottish Office.

The United Kingdom Central Electricity Board (CEB) was established by the Electricity (Supply) Act 1926. It had the duty to supply electricity to authorised electricity undertakers, to determine which power stations would be 'selected' stations to generate electricity for the board, to provide main transmission lines to interconnect selected stations and electricity undertakers, and to standardise generating frequency.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electricity Act 1947</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Electricity Act 1947 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which nationalised, or bought into state control, the electricity supply industry in Great Britain. It established a central authority called the British Electricity Authority (BEA) to own and operate all public electricity generation and transmission facilities and created 14 area electricity boards with a duty to acquire bulk supplies of electricity from the central authority and to distribute and sell electricity economically and efficiently to industrial, commercial and domestic consumers. It vested 505 separate local authority and company owned electricity undertakings in the BEA with effect from 1 April 1948. The Electricity Act 1947 is one of a number of Acts promulgated by the post-war Labour government to nationalise elements of the UK’s industrial infrastructure; other Acts include the Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946; Transport Act 1947 ; Gas Act 1948; and Iron and Steel Act 1949.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Padiham Power Station</span> Coal-fired power station in Lancashire, England

Padiham Power Station was a coal-fired power station in Padiham, east Lancashire, England, which began operation in 1926 and generated power from 1927 until it was closed in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northampton Power Station</span> Former electricity generating station

Northampton power station was an electricity generating station in Northampton, Northamptonshire, England, which began operation for the Northampton Electric Light and Power Company Limited (NELPC) in 1919 and generated power until closure in 1976.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electricity Act 1989</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Electricity Act 1989 provided for the privatisation of the electricity supply industry in Great Britain, by replacing the Central Electricity Generating Board in England and Wales and by restructuring the South of Scotland Electricity Board and the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board. The Act also established a licensing regime and a regulator for the industry called the Office of Electricity Regulation (OFFER), which has since become the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM).

The area gas boards were created under the provisions of the Gas Act 1948 enacted by Clement Attlee's post-war Labour government. The Act nationalised the British gas industry and also created the Gas Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gas Act 1948</span> United Kingdom legislation

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Huncoat Power Station</span> Former electricity generating station

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Electricity (Supply) Act 1926</span> United Kingdom legislation

The Electricity (Supply) Act 1926 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which amended the law on the supply of electricity. Its long title is: ‘An Act to amend the law with respect to the supply of electricity’. This Act was construed as one with the Electricity (Supply) Acts 1882 to 1922, and was cited as the Electricity (Supply) Acts 1882 to 1926. It established a statutory body, the Central Electricity Board (CEB), ‘with the duty of supplying electricity to authorised undertakers’ and to ‘appoint consultative technical committees’. It provided for the Electricity Commissioners to prepare and transmit to the CEB ‘electricity schemes’ for relevant areas, and which identified the most efficient ‘selected’ generating stations which were to be used to generate electricity for the Board. The Act provided for ‘main transmission line’ interconnections between selected stations and undertakings; and to standardise the frequency of generation; and other purposes. The provisions of the Act enabled the construction of the National Grid.

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Huddersfield power station supplied electricity to the town of Huddersfield and the wider area from 1893 to 1981. It was owned and operated by Huddersfield Corporation until the nationalisation of the electricity supply industry in 1948. The power station was redeveloped several times: including the incorporation of new plant in the 1910s, and in the 1930s to 1950s. The station was decommissioned in October 1981.

Fleetwood power stations were two generating stations that supplied electricity to the town of Fleetwood, England and the surrounding area from 1900 to 1981. The first station was owned by the Fleetwood and District Electric Light and Power Syndicate and later by Fleetwood Urban District Council. The second station was owned and operated by the state following the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948; this power station was decommissioned in October 1981.

Trafford power station supplied electricity to the Trafford and Stretford areas of Greater Manchester, and to the national grid, from 1929 to 1976. The generating station was built by the Stretford and District Electricity Board which it operated until the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. The 60 megawatt coal-fired station was supplemented in 1952 with an experimental 15 megawatt gas turbine generating set.

St Helens power station supplied electricity to the Borough of St Helens and the surrounding area from 1896 to the late 1960s. The power station was developed by the St Helens Corporation which operated it up to the nationalisation of the British electricity supply industry in 1948. It was redeveloped several times to meet the increased demand for electricity.

References

  1. Competition Commission (UK), Report on Electricity Supply Industry, 1987 (PDF) Archived March 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine