Coal Industry Dispute (Hansard, 13 May 1985)

§ 10. Mr. Flannery
asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what was the total cost to the Government as a result of lost taxes during the miners' strike.

§ Mr. Moore
After taking account of increases in revenue from, for example, heavy fuel oil duty, the direct loss of tax and national insurance contributions was of the order of £150 million net.

§ Mr. Flannery
According to today's opinion polls, the Conservative party is suffering from a terminal bout of anorexia nervosa. I should like to ask the Government about their policies. They have just made certain confessions. The miners fought for a year against the closure of pits by the Government without any discussion with the men working in those pits. Having lost all that money, and about £7 billion on top of that, the Government are now closing pits at a terrible rate without a democratic discussion with the people working in those pits. Can the Financial Secretary justify his answer, having pushed the British people into a dilemma for 12 months because of the loss of that money?—[Interruption.] Mr. Speaker, I am asking the Economic Secretary an honourable question.

§ Mr. Speaker
Order. The hon. Member's question had a long preamble.

§ Mr. Moore
The preamble and the substance of the question were rubbish and a total refutation of the efforts, not only of all the miners who worked throughout that strike, but of all the miners who have suffered from the type of brutality that we have seen because some Opposition Members supported naked Scargillism.

§ Mr. Neil Hamilton
Does my hon. Friend agree that a far more pertinent question would be about the cost to the taxpayer of an uneconomic coal industry with the miners not on strike?

§ Mr. Moore
Not only is my hon. Friend right, but a far more pertinent question would be about the loss to our nation and the coal industry resulting from that type of strike. Happiness for our country lies in the fact that the strike is over. We should seek to mend the problems that the industry faces and be pleased that that industry is back at work.