§ 73. Mr. J. Griffithsasked the Minister of Power if he will make a statement setting out in detail the cost to the National Coal Board of the new respon- 80W sibilities borne by the Board and the new services undertaken by it, which were not borne by the industry prior to nationalisation.
§ Mr. WoodThe National Coal Board has a general statutory obligation to operate in the national interest. In consequence it has undertaken a number of responsibilities such as providing all the coal required in the public interest, including importing coal at heavy cost when necessary, and building up abnormal stocks of coal and coke to avoid redundancy and unemployment. The Board's predecessors were not required by Statute to undertake these responsibilities. Additional responsibilities have been placed on the Board by legislation affecting subsidence damage, social Welfare and working conditions in the mines. The Board's Accounts show the cost of these and similar activities, but it would be highly speculative to estimate how these costs compare with practice before nationalisation, or with what would have been the present practice if the industry had not been nationalized