Captain A. Evansasked the Secretary for Mines whether he is aware that Great Britain is the only large coal-producing country in Europe which does not subsidise its coal exports; and whether he will take steps to secure that a conference should be called at the earliest possible opportunity with a view to seeing whether some agreement can be reached that will terminate or limit such subsidies?
§ Captain CrookshankI have seen a recent statement to that effect, but I must not be taken as accepting it without considerable qualification, as so much depends upon the different interpretations which can be placed on the word "subsidy." With regard to the second part of the question, I do not think that such a conference could achieve anything unless its terms of reference were extended to cover every aspect of competition in the export coal market; but this, as I informed my hon. Friend the Member for Newport (Sir R. Clarry) on 29th October, is primarily a matter for the coal trade itself.