COMPANY MEETINGS
AMALGAMATED ROADSTONE CORPORATION
THE PROBLEM OF THE ROADS THE second annual general meeting of Amalgamated Road- stone Corporation, Limited, was held on July 28th at River Plate House, London, E.C.
Mr. G. F. Nalder, the Chairman, said that there was a net profit of £37,938. In considering that figure, it should be borne in mind that maintenance and development written off had amounted to no less than £25,739, and provision for depreciation and amortisation to £16,468.
Last year he had made some remarks about the Government's road programme as that was one of the factors upon which the future prosperity of the company must depend. The position at the time of speaking was that in spite of all the safety regulations brought into force during the last year or two, the effect of which, by slowing-up the traffic, was bound to increase congestion, mortality had steadily increased. The fact was that the country's roads were inadequate and unsuitable for the traffic.
So far the Government's remedies in tackling the urgent problem had been merely restrictive and not constructive ; in the. two years since the General Election campaign of 1935, when the Government had promised to embark on a Five Year Plan involving an expenditure of £700,000,000, less than £7,000,000 per annum had been spent. The position was becoming so acute that there could be no other remedy than the reconstruction, where possible, of the existing roads of the country, and a comprehensive replanning of the whole roadWaY system.
The problem was equally important from the point. of view of National Defence. It was probable that the Government had had to give priority to the more .urgent problems of rearmament, but he was confident that in the early future resources must be released for expenditure on the roads. In the meantime an increasing pro- portion of their output was being demanded for the manufacture of high grade concrete for the defence programme. They considered that granite was the best aggregate for making safe and durable roads, whether concrete, asphalt, or tarmac, and the policy of the Board had been to place the company in a position to supply very large quantities of granite as and when required.
The report .was unanimously adopted, and the proposed final dividend of 34 per cent. on the ordinary shares, making 6 per cent. for the year, was approved.
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