HC Deb 27 November 1945 vol 416 c1278W
Mr. Timmons

asked the Minister of Fuel and Power what minerals were found during boring operations by the D'Arcy Company when boring for oil for the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company in Lanarkshire.

Mr. Shinwell

Licensees are under statutory obligation to supply details of the strata, including minerals of economic interest to His Majesty's Geological Survey and to my Ministry, and to supply representative samples if so required. There is, however, a corresponding obligation on recipients of this information to treat it as confidential unless the licensee agrees to publication. The consent of the licensee must not be unreasonably withheld if such publication is considered to be in the public interest.

In the case of the boring referred to in this Question I do not think the public interest calls for publication. In view, however, of certain suggestions, which have received some publicity, that important new seams of coal were discovered, I can say that no data not already known to the Geological Survey were obtained.

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