HC Deb 20 January 1993 vol 217 cc362-4
3. Mr. John Evans

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if he will make a statement on his Department's support for the British mining industry.

Mr. Eggar

We are engaged in a wide-ranging review of the prospects for 21 of the pits proposed for closure by British Coal, in the context of the Government's energy policy. We shall shortly be publishing a White Paper setting out the results of that review, which will then be debated in the House.

Mr. Evans

Will the Minister give an undertaking that in view of the High Court's ruling that British Coal and the Government acted unlawfully in closing the 10 collieries, which include Parkside in my constituency, he will ensure that the criteria under which Boyds reviews those collieries will be exactly the same as the criteria being used in the review of the other 21 collieries? Everyone could then be sure that those 10 collieries were getting a fair deal.

Will the Minister give the House and the country a further undertaking that the miners at the 10 collieries will not be dismissed, at least until the House has had the opportunity to debate the Government's review of the future of the British coal industry?

Mr. Eggar

On the first part of the hon. Gentleman's question, Boyds' report on the 21 pits plus the additional 19 will be published. With regard to the report on the 10 pits which my right hon. Friend has asked Boyds to prepare, both the unions and British Coal will be consulted. We assume that that report will also be published and made available. At that stage, the House will have an opportunity to consider it, as well as the report that is shortly to be published on the 21 pits plus the additional 19.

On the latter part of the question, there will be no compulsory redundancies until there has been a debate in the House, until the review has been published and until the House has had an opportunity to discuss the White Paper and the report of the Select Committee on Trade and Industry.

I apologise for the length of that answer, Madam Speaker.

Mr. Cormack

Does my hon. Friend accept that many thousands of miners are finding it extremely difficult to decide on their future before they know the future of their industry? Therefore, will he talk to Mr. Clarke urgently and ask that the special redundancy and early retirement arrangements be kept in force for at least another six months so that those men are relieved of the intolerable, agonising pressures that they face at the moment?

Mr. Eggar

We are acutely conscious of that point, which Mr. Neil Greatrex of the Union of Democratic Mineworkers made to me this morning.

Mr. Skinner

The 90 days are almost up.

Mr. Eggar

We have said—I think that this must be right—that we should not make any decision, nor should we press British Coal to make any decision, in advance of the publication of the White Paper, because that obviously has a bearing. The two are interconnected.

Mr. Hardy

Before reaching any conclusions, will the Minister take particular care to consider the total cost of the closures as well as the sterilisation of large volumes of coal? Will he take even more care in considering the recommendations of the electricity regulator in the recent report on electricity purchasing which appears to ignore the costs of production and reaches conclusions that are not justified by the facts, which are known to the hon. Gentleman, his Department and every hon. Member who is concerned about this matter?

Mr. Eggar

Of course, the matters mentioned in the hon. Gentleman's first point will be considered as part of the review. The responsibility for the report is Professor Stephen Littlechild's, but, as the hon. Gentleman would expect, that report is one of the factors that we shall consider as part of the review. It may help the House, as the matter was raised from a sedentary position, if I add that the 90 days is the minimum consultation period.

Mr. Alexander

Bearing in mind the huge anxiety among the mining communities about the final outcome, may I ask my hon. Friend to confirm that the Boyds' report on the 10 pits and the reports of the Select Committees on Employment and on Trade and Industry will all be the subject of the Government's conclusions in their White Paper before we come to the House and discuss it with a view to determining our future energy policy?

Mr. Eggar

It will be important to have those documents available, but my hon. Friend will be aware that the coal industry faces a major crisis at the beginning of April when there are no contracts for coal. If we were to delay the publication of all the documents in the way that my hon. Friend suggests, no coaling at all may be possible on 1 April. I am sure that my hon. Friend would not want that, but I shall bear in mind his other points.

Mr. O'Neill

The Minister clarified his reply to the hon. Member for Staffordshire, South (Mr. Cormack) in relation to the 90-day period and the special redundancy terms that have been offered. Will those redundancy terms remain on the table until the various problems that flow from the court decision are resolved? Can we take it that the offer will remain for as long as it takes to resolve the matter? That is the men's worry at present and the Minister was not specific in his reply.

Mr. Eggar

I understand the hon. Gentleman's point. First, I repeat that the 90-day consultation period is a minimum period, so no miner should be under the impression, as I understand some are, that on 30 January the position will suddenly change from what it was on 29 January.

The hon. Gentleman's second point relates to the end of March date for the present voluntary redundancy terms. To clarify the matter, we are acutely aware of the concern about that, but we do not think that it would be right either to announce that the scheme will stop on that date or that it will be extended beyond that date, in advance of the publication of the White Paper and the other papers. Those decisions must be taken in the light of the White Paper. I hope that the House will understand that.