§ Lieut. - Commander KENWORTHYasked the Secretary for Mines whether he has decided what legislative and/or administrative action he can take to 1960W mitigate the grievances of the domestic consumer of coal with regard to the price, quality, etc., of coal supplied by the trade for household use?
§ Mr. SHINWELLIn my reply to the hon. and gallant Member on the 13th May, I indicated the possible courses of action that had been suggested to me, and which I was examining. I cannot at present go further than this. I hoped when I embarked on this inquiry to get full information from the merchants. In this I have been disappointed, and my difficulties are correspondingly increased. On the other hand, as is usual at this time of year, substantial reductions have recently been made in the price of coal; there is no longer any difficulty in getting supplies, and the problem is not for the moment acute. In these circumstances I should be ill-advised if I did not take the necessary time to complete my inquiries and to give to the question all the consideration that its importance and complexity call for.