Coal Industry Dispute

HC Deb 18 March 1985 vol 75 cc622-3

11. Mr. Marlow

asked the Secretary of State for Transport what is the latest estimate of the cost of the coal dispute to British Rail; and how the money is to be recovered.

Mr. David Mitchell

British Rail estimates lost freight receipts at £240 million. It is for British Rail to devise ways of recovering these losses and to achieve the financial target for the freight business.

Mr. Marlow

If such losses were made by a private sector company, obviously they would not be made up by the taxpayer. Will my hon. Friend give a categorical assurance that the money lost by British Rail will not be forced as a burden on the taxpayer in any way?

Mr. Mitchell

British Rail has not approached us for any financial recompense, and it is not expected to do so. But the losses may mean that it has to increase its borrowing. If it comes to us with that request, we shall consider it carefully.

Mr. Maclean

Will my hon. Friend make it clear to the chairman of British Rail that part of that money could be recovered from the British Rail unions which took illegal secondary action during the coal strike? Will my hon. Friend also make it very plain to the chairman of British Rail that if he wants extra borrowing powers and Members of Parliament to vote for them, we expect some genuine productivity gains to be made on the British Rail network?

Mr. Mitchell

It is regrettable that some £60 million of the losses during the coal strike were caused by railway men themselves. Action of this kind can do nothing but damage their own industry, the jobs which depend upon it and the future of freight carrying by rail.

Mr. Gregory

As many economists consider that the figure of £60 million is a considerable underestimate, why did my hon. Friend the Minister not advise the chairman of British Rail—as he did the south Wales road hauliers — that he could take legal action against secondary picketing? My hon. Friend would not then have to announce such a staggering sum to the House after the coal industry dispute, which will presumably have to be picked up by the taxpayer.

Mr. Mitchell

I must reassure my hon. Friend that the taxpayer will not pick up the bill. That is a problem for British Rail. British Rail is running a commercial freight business, and the consequences will be felt by those who work in it. They damage themselves, and there is nothing that the taxpayer can or should do to bail them out of the results of their own actions. The question of taking legal action during the strike was entirely a matter for the management of BR to decide. It must make its own judgment as to what is best for its business.

Mr. Rogers

Does the Minister accept that the alarming cost of the coal dispute, which is now becoming evident to everyone, is due to the Government's shortsightedness in not resolving the issue when they had an opportunity to do so?

Mr. Mitchell

The sum lost by BR was £240 million in revenue, of which £60 million was lost as a result of railwaymen's actions and not as a result of anything that was outside their ability to control and influence.