HL Deb 20 January 1987 vol 483 cc814-5

2.55 p.m.

Lord Gainford

My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on the Order Paper.

The Question was as follows:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what improvements in efficiency have been made by British Coal.

Viscount Davidson

My Lords, British Coal has made great improvements in its efficiency. Between November 1985 and November 1986, productivity in terms of output per man shift has increased by 23 per cent.

Lord Gainford

My Lords, I thank my noble friend the Minister for that short but very encouraging reply. Has he any information as to how much this percentage may improve in relation to the number of redundancies that there have been in the coal industry?

Viscount Davidson

My Lords, pits have always closed under governments of all persuasions. Keeping uneconomic pits open cannot provide an answer to unemployment. Nevertheless, recognising the need for restructuring the industry, Her Majesty's Government have made available most generous terms for those who wish to leave the industry. Furthermore, British Coal has been prepared to offer alternative jobs to all those who wish to remain. There have been no compulsory redundancies.

The Earl of Lauderdale

My Lords, can my noble friend say what progress has been made toward getting British coal down to a price that is competitive with coal imports from Australia, South Africa and North America?

Viscount Davidson

My Lords, the main point of the restructuring is to make British coal competitive with imported coal. That is still the aim. It has not yet been achieved. We are hopeful that it will be achieved before long.

The Earl of Lauderdale

My Lords, my noble friend also referred to improvements in productivity. Is he aware that in Australian coal mines productivity is something like 30 to 40 tonnes per man shift as against three or four tonnes in Britain?

Viscount Davidson

My Lords, I suggest that our coal mines are rather older than the Australian mines.

Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor

My Lords, can the Government say whether they have any plans to increase the opencast coal workings in this country, bearing in mind that the profitability of coal from that source is, I believe, something like 15 times greater than from deep mined coal?

Viscount Davidson

My Lords, one of the pits in the Selby complex is already producing coal. Others will follow next year. When complete, Selby will be British Coal's showcase to illustrate how utilisation of new technology can create low cost, high productivity output of around 10 million tonnes per year.