§ Mr. Woodallasked the Secretary of State for Energy what additional financial support the Government have agreed to give the National Coal Board for this financial year; and what are the implications for the DEN 3 cash limit.
§ Mr. EadieSubject to parliamentary approval of Supplementary Estimates, the Government have agreed to make a further £50 million at 1978–79 outturn prices available to the National Coal Board within the planned total of public expenditure for this financial year. This780W will cover assisted coalburn, stocking aid for coal and coke and coking coal production subsidy, bringing the total grants to the Board for 1978–79 now agreed to £124 million.
The grants for the stocking of coke have been agreed as part of a five-year programme of support estimated at £60 million to help the Board's subsidiary, National Smokeless Fuels, to adjust to the expected level of demand for coke. Provisions for this will be included in the next public expenditure White Paper.
Coalburn assistance is included in the cash limit against the Department of Energy's block DEN 3, covering research and development and industrial sponsorship. As announced by my right hon. Friend the Minister of State, Civil Service Department on 2nd November, the limit of £62.2 million in Cmnd. 7161 has been reduced by £0.8 million to offset an increase in the Central Office of Information block COI 2. The revised DEN 3 limit of £61.4 million has now been increased by £17.7 million to £79.1 million.