LCC , London County Council x London County Council

The term 'public control', as used in the Council's organisation, embraced various services of a regulative character, mostly exercised by some form of licensing control. Largely unobtrusive in their operation, and producing no spectacular effects, they were all carried out in the public interest and, in some respects, for the protection of the public or certain sections of it.

Their administration was conditioned by trends in the legislative provisions under which they were operated, by shifts and changes in social usages, and by the development of the Council's policies towards the matters to which they related.

The Council was the weights and measures authority for the County of London (excluding the City) and employed twenty-three duly qualified inspectors and five authorised coal officers. Four area offices were maintained at which a large quantity of very accurate equipment was kept, including standard measures, fine balances, public weighbridges, a weighbridge testing vehicle, and machines for testing and stamping glass measures.

Increases in the sale of prepacked goods had an effect on legislation. Statutory regulations in 1957 made it an offence to sell any prepackaged food, with certain exceptions, unless the wrapper was legibly marked with a true statement of the contents. During the year 1962-1963 the Council's inspectors examined 537,000 articles of food at 14,000 premises.