The Secretary stated that whilst both the Company and the Council had hoped that representations on the, subject of the anomaly in the North ern district might now be adjusted, it was realized from the Telephone Company's explat tion and. after Aumierous conversations with - the manager of the Company that 0 remedy could be found until a new' franchise covering the whole of the Outside Roads area was obtained. One of the difculties of obtaining such a franchise was that the 'Telephone Company's temporary _agreement was mainly with the' Chinese National Telephone Administration, whereas the negotiations concerning the Outside Roads "and the Public Utilities Companies' negotiations for franchises were with the City Government, The Councit itself was n in a position to conduct the negotiations for the Telephone Company's franchise, which must be left to the Company. The Council was, however, being kept fully informed of any ' developments, and both the Council and the Company were keeping well in mind the desirability of remedying at the earliest possible moment discrimination between areas Income Tax and Depreciation At a subsequent meeting of the! Committee the Treasurer and Controller submitted a report dealing with the questions of income. tax, depreciation, etc., as affecting the basis of revision of telephone charges. The Treasurer did pot think that exception could reasonably be taken to the Company's estimates of income and working expenditure for the next two years, apart from the following] specific points. He observed that the calling rates might not diminish under the proposed tariff by 50 per cent. as estimated by the Company, and that any lesser drop.might be offset
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.