§ Mr. Coombsasked the Secretary of State for Energy what proportion of Britain's energy needs is met by (a) oil, (b) gas, (c) coal, (d) nuclear fuel and (e) other sources; and what were the figures in 1979, 1974, 1970, 1964 and 1959.
§ Mr. Buchanan-SmithThe following table gives the proportions of primary energy consumption met by each of the fuels, based on the volume of coal or coal equivalent. The use of fuels for non-energy purposes is included.
£ million Financial year Net repayment of Government loans Interest on out standing loans BGC ESI BGC ESI 1975–76 77 (95) 136 272 1976–77 136 320 125 301 1977–78 510 110 106 281 1978–79 606 7 59 296 1979–80 109 (837) 7 274 1980–81 — (296) — 412 1981–82 — 449 — 464 1982–83 — (25) — 387 1983–84 — 857 — 379 1984–85 — 553 — 295 () represents additional borrowing.
Since the full repayment of Government loans in 1979–80, the British Gas Corporation has been investing funds surplus to its requirements on interest-earning deposit with the public sector. These remain in the ownership of the corporation.