National Coal Board (Hansard, 16 May 1980)

§ Mr. Skeet
asked the Secretary of State for Energy, of the borrowing provision set forth in clause 1 of the Coal Industry Bill, namely, an increase of £1,600 million over the 1977 Act ceiling, whether it is intended to enable the National Coal Board to complete its investment programme under the " Plan for Coal".

§ Mr. John Moore
Virtually all the NCB's capital expenditure during the period for which the proposed new borrowing powers are expected to last will be on projects which fall within the programme presented in the Board's "Plan for Coal".

§ Mr. Skeet
asked the Secretary of State for Energy whether deficit grants under clause 3 of the Coal Industry Bill are tantamount either to write-offs of capital or operational losses.

§ Mr. John Moore
Deficit grants, for which powers are sought under clause 3 of the Bill, are intended to eliminate or reduce the group deficit remaining on the Board's consolidated profit and loss account after other Government grants, interest, taxation and extraordinary items. They are not a form of capital write-off.

§ Mr. Skeet
asked the Secretary of State for Energy what will be the apportionment of the initial ceiling of £525 million imposed by clause 4 of the Coal Industry 734W Bill between (a) deficit grants, (b) promoting coal-burn, (c) stocking coal or coke and (d) section 8 Coal Industry Act 1977 grants.

§ Mr. John Moore
Subject to an overall annual limit which I have laid down in advance with the NCB, the balance between these different grants will be determined year by year. Within the total the Government will stand by existing arrangements to pay a total of £20.4 million under Section 2 of the Coal Industry Act 1977 to support a scheme for promoting coalburn by the South of Scotland Electricity Board down to 1982–83 and a total of £27.9 million under Section 3 of the same Act by way of aid for the stocking of coke, over the same period. Both these amounts are expressed in 1979 survey prices and will need to be revalued each year. I do not expect to make payments under section 8 of the Coal Industry Act 1977, which would be repealed under the Coal Industry Bill now before Parliament.