Imperial Telegraphs Act 1938

1938 CHAPTER 57 1 and 2 Geo 6

An Act to enable the Treasury and the Postmaster-General to carry out certain arrangements made by His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom with Cable and Wireless Limited, and in connection with those arrangements to amend the law with respect to the calculation of the Post Office net surplus; and for purposes connected with the matters aforesaid.

[29th July 1938]

Whereas in pursuance of the recommendations of the Conference referred to in the recitals of theM1 Imperial Telegraphs Act 1929, certain telegraphic undertakings were transferred to a company, therein referred to as “the Communications Company” and now named “Cable and Wireless Limited”:

And whereas in a lease (hereinafter referred to as “the said lease”) dated the fourth day of September nineteen hundred and twenty-nine and made between the Postmaster-General on behalf of His Majesty of the first part, Cable and Wireless Limited (by its then name of Imperial and International Communications Limited) of the second part and Cable and Wireless (Holding) Limited (by its then name of Cables and Wireless Limited) of the third part, the Postmaster-General demised to Cable and Wireless Limited certain freehold land and premises more particularly described in the said lease together with certain plant (all which freehold land and premises and plant are hereinafter referred to as “the beam wireless stations”) for the term of twenty-five years from the first day of April nineteen hundred and twenty-eight at the yearly rent of two hundred and fifty thousand pounds and, in certain events, an additional rent calculated by reference to any excess of the net revenue of Cable and Wireless Limited over a standard revenue:

And whereas by an agreement (hereinafter referred to as “the circuits agreement”) dated the said fourth day of September and made between the Postmaster-General and Cable and Wireless Limited (by its said then name) provision was made for the appropriation for the use of the said company of certain circuits connecting the beam wireless stations and the Central Telegraph Office, or of other circuits substituted therefor, but the said agreement was by the terms thereof in no event to continue after the said lease had ceased to be in force:

And whereas the Postmaster-General has a claim (hereinafter referred to as “the Kenya claim”) against Cable and Wireless Limited in respect of a right conceded to the said company to operate a wireless telegraph service with Kenya, the amount of which claim has not been finally determined but does not exceed thirty-five thousand pounds:

And whereas certain arrangements have been made between His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom and Cable and Wireless Limited with a view to the maintenance of a satisfactory system of imperial communications and the reduction of certain telegraphic rates charged to the public:

And whereas the carrying out of the said arrangements involves, amongst other things,—

(a) the sale, to take effect as from the beginning of March nineteen hundred and thirty-eight, by the Postmaster-General to the said company of his estate and interest in the beam wireless stations in reversion expectant on the determination of the said lease, and the making over to the Treasury, in consideration of the said sale as well as of other matters provided for by the said arrangements, of certain fully paid shares in the said company, together with the right to dividends declared thereon in respect of any period beginning after the said date and to a proportionate part of dividends declared thereon in respect of a period which includes the said date;

(b) the continuation of the circuits agreement with certain alterations;

(c) the waiver by the Postmaster-General of the Kenya claim; and

(d) the sharing in agreed proportions by the Postmaster-General and the said company of certain sums which, under the International Telegraph Regulations, fall to be received and retained by them in respect of telegrams within the European telegraph system as defined for the purposes of those Regulations:

Marginal Citations

M1 1929 c. 7.

1 Power of Treasury and Postmaster-General to carry out arrangements with Cable and Wireless Limited. U.K.

(1) The Treasury may accept any fully paid shares in Cable and Wireless Limited made over to it as aforesaid, and any dividends or other sums received by the Treasury in respect of those shares (other than any part of any dividends on any shares transferred to the Treasury which the Treasury may be liable to pay to the transferors of those shares) shall be paid into the Exchequer.

(2)—(5) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F1

Textual Amendments

F1 S. 1(2)-(5) repealed by Statute Law Revision Act 1960 (c. 56)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 1(1) restricted by British Telecommunications Act 1981 (c. 38, SIF 96), s. 79(1)

2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2 U.K.

Textual Amendments

F2 S. 2 repealed by Post Office Act 1961 (c. 15), Sch.

3 Short title. U.K.

This Act may be cited as the Imperial Telegraphs Act 1938.