§ 99. Miss Burtonasked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether he is aware that in Coventry summer stocks of domestic coal are lower than in any year since the war; that house deliveries this winter are expected to be below those of last winter by an average of 1 cwt. per registered 95W customer while, in addition, there is little hope of giving customers the full allowance of one ton of domestic coal allocated for the summer period; that the average amount delivered will be 15 cwt. including some opencast coal; and what steps he is taking to ensure that supplies in Coventry are commensurate with those in other cities of comparable size.
§ 101. Mr. G. M. Thomsonasked the Minister of Fuel and Power whether his attention has been drawn to the domestic fuel position in Dundee; and what steps he is taking to ensure adequate supplies during the coming winter.
§ Mr. Joynson-HicksThe House Coal Distribution (Emergency) Scheme ensures that merchants in all parts of the country receive a fair allocation from the house coal programme and I understand that deliveries against allocation in the cities of Coventry and Dundee are well up to the average of the rest of the country. In regard to the general level of domestic coal supplies, I would refer the hon. Members to my right hon. Friend's recent statements.
§ 102. Sir P. Macdonaldasked the Minister of Fuel and Power if he is aware of the difficulties which coal merchants in the Isle of Wight are having in obtaining supplies of coke at reasonable prices; and when the scheme submitted to him by the Gas Council for consideration by the Industrial and Domestic Coal Consumers Councils is to be implemented.
§ Mr. Joynson-HicksI am advised that there are ample stocks of coke in the Isle of Wight. My right hon. Friend trusts that any difficulties in marketing the coke will be resolved by the Gas Council Scheme which, as he advised my hon. Friend the Member for Kidderminster (Mr. Nabarro) on 13th July, will come into force this autumn.
§ 104. Mr. Robson-Brownasked the Minister of Fuel and Power what average weekly increase in coal supplies he estimates he would require for the period from the end of July to the end of March next in order to cover the present coal shortage and provide reasonable supplies to domestic consumers during the coming winter; and how many individual pits are operating in Great Britain.
96W
§ Mr. Joynson-HicksThere are approximately 1,300 pits, of which 881 are operated by the Coal Board. My right hon. Friend would prefer to wait until we have a clearer picture of the likely level of end-summer stocks before he gives an estimate of next winter's supply requirements.