§ Mr. Mainwaringasked the Minister of Fuel and Power what is the allocation of coal per week for domestic purposes throughout the country; and what is the 1107W amount made available for distribution, among other than mineworkers, in Rhondda?
Major Lloyd GeorgeThe house coal allocation programme covers all controlled premises registered under the Coal Distribution Order, 1943. Such premises include not only private houses but hotels, shops, schools, hospitals and also industrial undertakings which consume less than 100 tons of coal per annum. Separate figures are not available in respect of allocations for domestic purposes only. This allocation programme provides, as from the 1st November a weekly average of 89 cwt. per controlled premises over the whole country, and 1 cwt. for the Rhondda Valley. My hon. Friend will appreciate, however, that, since, in general, the consumption of coal in the other classes of registered premises is higher than that of the domestic consumer, the average amount available for the latter is something less than the quantity stated. These quantities exclude coke and other alternative fuels as well as miners' coal. The figures mentioned above relate only to the allocation programme of supplies of coal to merchants. The quantity of coal which may be supplied to individual premises is covered by the Coal Distribution Order, 1943, General Direction (Restriction of Supplies) No. 2, and depends upon the amount of coal in stock at the premises concerned. Since many domestic consumers have responded to my appeal and laid in stocks during the summer, no distribution of coal will be required this winter at a substantial proportion of these premises.