§ 16. Mr. Errollasked the Minister of Fuel and Power what is the outcome of the local inquiry which he held on 21st March into objections to the continuation of opencast coal mining operations at the Winstanley Hall Opencast Coal No. 3A and adjacent sites.
§ Mr. GaitskellThe meeting on 21st March was held by the Billinge Urban District Council. Representatives of local residents and the Winstanley Estate were heard. The interests of their constituents were represented by my hon. Friends the Members for Ince (Mr. T. Brown) and Wigan (Mr. R. Williams) respectively. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary attended the meeting and there were also present a number of officials from the Ministries concerned.
My hon. Friend took note of the complaints and indicated that, while the Ministry would take all possible steps to ameliorate any nuisance caused by the opencast coal workings, it was essential in the national interest that the work should continue.
§ Mr. ErrollCan the Minister give no hope of any relief for the residents of this area?
§ Mr. GaitskellAs I have said, we are doing what we can to ameliorate the conditions, and certain instructions have been given, of which the hon. Member will be informed by my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary.
§ Mr. Tom BrownIs the Minister aware that if the past owners of the coalmines of this country had done their duty before nationalisation came into operation, opencast mining would not have been required?