HC Deb 07 November 1967 vol 753 cc814-6
13. Mr. Eadie

asked the Minister of Power what consideration is now being given to the replacement of imported fuels by indigenous fuels in this country as a consequence of the closure of the Suez Canal.

Mr. Marsh

In the circumstances following the Middle East crisis, certain public authorities and nationalised industries were asked to cut back temporarily on their planned use of petroleum products, and the present surcharge on oil prices also provides a strong incentive to economise in their use. As regards the relative place of imported and indigenous fuels in the longer term, I would ask my hon. Friend to await the forthcoming White Paper on Fuel Policy.

Mr. Eadie

Would my right hon. Friend not agree that it is technically possible to produce oil from coal? Would he not further agree that it requires examination of the conclusions of the 1960 Wilson Committee on coal derivatives, as a result of the situation of our oil supplies?

Mr. Marsh

Yes, on the first point, this is a technical process. It is, of course, highly expensive at present and not really a commercial proposition. On the general point, I think that what has emerged as the result of the recent crisis is unlike that of the Suez crisis when there was a different management. On this occasion we have not been short of oil.

Mr. Mendelson

Would my right hon. Friend consider, perhaps as an additional section to his White Paper, giving the House and the country precise figures of how much the import of oil, in view of the increased cost of transportation, really means per annum over a five-year period, so that we may have a fair basis of comparison with the cost of fuel produced at home?

Mr. Marsh

As I am sure my hon. Friend knows, certainly there will be a lot of figures in the White Paper dealing with the balance of payments position on oil in particular. Clearly, there are some figures which will not be in the White Paper.

Mr. Lubbock

Has the Minister seen reports of the vast profits made by certain oil companies out of the Suez crisis, and has he suggested to the companies that they might reduce their prices substantially now that the crisis is over?

Mr. Marsh

I think that we are probably reaching the stage when it would be useful to look again at oil prices.

Forward to