On Tuesday the London County Council again considered the question
of the new County Hall. The Deputy-Chairman (Mr. W. H. Dickinson) moved to accept the Report of the Committee, which was in favour of buying the Westminster site for 2750,000. Roughly speaking, they were taking houses at the rate of two a year to accommodate the staff, a plan which was extravagant and inefficient. Glasgow spent 2500,000 on its Hall, and Manchester over a million. If the new Hall cost 21,500,000, it would only be 6s, sa. a head, againstd4s. 6d. a head spent for the same purpose by Birmingham. Lord Rosebery —who, in spite of its being "the heaviest day of his week," attended the Council—strongly urged the rejection of the scheme. The Westminster site was a bad one, for there they must either "overshadow Parliament, or it must overshadow them." Besides, they had refused to enter upon any great schemes of expenditure till they got a different system of rating. "Were they to go before their constituents and say, wing to the irregularities of rating, we will not carry out a single improvement until the incidence of rating is altered. Oh, I forgot ; there is an insignificant exception; we propose to spend a million-and-a-half on a suitable residence for our- selves.'" "He implored them, with all the earnestness of which he was capable, to reject that fatal proposal." Ulti- mately the plan was rejected by an overwhelming majority, and London was saved from a financial blunder of a par- ticularly glaring kind. The decision will tend to bring nearer the amalgamation of the City with the County of London.
Previous page
