§ Mr. Skeetasked the Secretary of State for Energy, in view of the evidence that underground gasification has been a failure, if he will make a study of the evidence of the consulting engineer, Mr. H. E. Collins, contained in paragraph 214 of the report of the Select Committee on the European Communities (Subcommittee F), published on 7 November 1978.
§ Mr. John MooreI am aware of the evidence of Mr. H. E. Collins in the Select Committee report and I accept that underground gasification is not the panacea for our energy problem. Nevertheless, recent work in North America and Western Europe suggests that the technique may yet be able to make some contribution to future energy supplies.