British Coal Corporation (Hansard, 25 July 1988)

§ 7. Dr. Reid
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the chairman of the British Coal Corporation; and if he will list the subjects discussed.

§ 9. Mr. Janner
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the chairman of British Coal; and what matters were discussed.

§ 10. Mr. Eadie
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he next proposes to meet the chairman of British Coal to discuss matters affecting the coal industry.

§ 17. Mr. Strang
To ask the Secretary of State for Energy when he last met the chairman of British Coal; and if he will list the subjects discussed.

§ Mr. Parkinson
I meet the chairman of British Coal regularly to discuss all aspects of the coal industry.

§ Mr. Janner
Has the Secretary of State discussed with the chairman of British Coal the rumour that is going around that the Government intend to close seven of the eight coal-powered stations in the Leicestershire, Staffordshire and south Derbyshire coalfields area by the year 2000? Can the Secretary of State confirm that it is intended instead to build coal-fired stations near the coast and to use imported coal? The Secretary of State will understand—if the rumours are correct—just how horrified coal miners, their families and all the people in those areas are.

§ Mr. Parkinson
I can truthfully tell the hon. and learned Gentleman that that is the first I have ever heard of that suggestion and that it has never been discussed at any time with me.

§ Mr. Eadie
When the Secretary of State told me last Question Time that an agreement between the SSEB and British Coal was imminent, was he aware that that agreement would last only until March next year? Does he agree that no industry, never mind the coal industry, can plan its operations over such a short period? In the light of his meetings with the chairman of British Coal, can the Secretary of State supply the House with information on the likelihood of British Coal taking the SSEB to court over the Longannet and Cockenzie power stations?

§ Mr. Parkinson
Last time we had energy questions we were approaching the deadline for agreement between the two parties, and I said that I had reason to believe that they would reach agreement. I hope that they will use the next year to negotiate to put the arrangements between them on to a long-term basis. I made it clear that both my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland and I believed that there was a good future for Scottish coal, especially with the strengthening of the inter-connector, which will open up the English market for Scottish electricity, which has previously been closed to it.

§ Mr. Eadie
What about the courts?

§ Mr. Parkinson
On the subject of the courts, the two parties are negotiating. I hope that the question of the interim interdict can be put on one side and that they can focus on reaching long-term agreement.

§ Mr. Ashby
Will my right hon. Friend congratulate the chairman on the most successful visit that he organised last Friday for my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State and me to opencast sites in my constituency of Leicestershire, North-West? Will my right hon. Friend remind the chairman that there are a large number of areas of dereliction caused by mineral extraction and that it is in those areas, and those areas only, that opencast mining should take place in the next 10 to 15 years?

§ Mr. Parkinson
I heard from my hon. Friend this morning that he had found the visit extremely interesting. I think we all recognise that there is an important place for opencast coal in meeting our future coal needs. I am sure that the hon. Member for Midlothian (Mr. Eadie), the Opposition Front Bench spokesman who speaks for Scotland on these matters, will share my pleasure that the Northern Ireland Electricity Company has decided that Kilroot will be a coal-burning station and that that coal will be supplied from Ayrshire on a very competitive basis.

§ Mr. Andrew Mitchell
When my right hon. Friend next speaks to the chairman of British Coal, will he make a point of congratulating the Nottinghamshire miners on turning in an operating profit of £48 million during the past year, as well as on the very steep increases in productivity obtained by those miners during the same period? Will he make it clear that the important point is for the industry single-mindedly to pursue increases in productivity as the best guarantee of competitiveness and the long-term future of the industry, regardless of whether it is in the public or the private sector?

§ Mr. Parkinson
I shall draw my hon. Friend's remarks to the chairman's attention. I repeat that this point is recognised increasingly throughout the industry. In the 12 past 12 weeks, six successive productivity records have been achieved, so the men working in the industry recognise that their future is literally in their hands.

§ Mr. Redmond
Does the Secretary of State agree that British Coal pensioners who helped produce coal to meet the needs of the country during two world wars—with blood, sweat and tears—receive a smokeless fuel allowance that is totally inadequate? When he next meets the chairman of the Coal Board, will he ask for an increase for those pensioners and widows?

§ Mr. Parkinson
I confess that I have not come across that point before. I shall examine the matter and bring it to the attention of the chairman