§ 23 and 24. Mr. Smallasked the Minister of Power (1) what was Scotland's share of Great Britain's consumption of fuel oil in 1948, and in 1959;
861 (2) if he will state the percentage increase in the consumption of fuel oil in Scotland between 1948 and 1959; and if he will give the comparable figure for the rest of Great Britain over the same period.
§ Mr. GeorgeFigures of fuel oil deliveries in Scotland have been collected only since 1955. Between 1955 and 1959 deliveries in Scotland rose by 108 per cent., compared with 160 per cent. in the rest of Great Britain. Scotland's share between these two years fell from 6¾ to 5½ per cent.
§ Mr. SmallDoes not the hon. Gentleman agree that his reply evidences the declining situation in Scotland, and that, while Scotland is having most of the pit closures, we are not getting the benefit of the industrial expansion related to the increased fuel oil consumption?
§ Mr. GeorgeI should have thought the hon. Gentleman would have been delighted that oil was not capturing the coal market in Scotland as quickly as it is in England.
Mr. LeeWill the Parliamentary Secretary remember his Answer to my hon. Friend the Member for Bosworth (Mr. Wyatt)? Will he not agree that if we now gear our industrial methods to the burning of oil, to the exclusion of coal, and then find that the continued increase in the importation of oil means that our balance of payments position runs into trouble again, we shall be placed in an impossible position, having neglected our own indigenous fuels, such as coal?
§ Mr. GeorgeThe hon. Gentleman is exaggerating the future possibilities. No one intends to gear our industrial production to fuel oil as against coal. The use of oil is undoubtedly increasing. While imports exceed exports at the moment, it must be remembered that new refineries are coming into operation so that that position will be rectified.