§ Mr. LANSBURYasked the Secretary for Mines whether he has received a resolution from the Poplar Borough Council complaining of the difficulty experienced by that council in securing coal supplies at a reasonable price and at. the time required; and will he consider legislation for the control of the coal industry?
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§ Lieut.-Colonel LANE-FOXYes, Sir, I have received complaints to this effect from the Poplar Borough Council, and I have no doubt that public utility undertakings and manufacturers who did not contract well ahead when the price of coal was low are now obliged to pay an increased price. But I certainly cannot subscribe to the suggestion that the situation is such as to warrant my asking Parliament to reimpose control over the coal industry.