§ Mrs. ClwydTo ask the President of the Board of Trade whether permission was(a) sought from the guarantor and (b) given by the guarantor for British Coal's action in appropriating the assets of the industrial death and retirement fund. [23515]
§ Mr. PageThis is a matter for the British Coal Corporation. I understand, however, that the industrial death and retirement scheme—it was not a fund—had no guarantor. British Coal retains the liability to meet all entitlements under the scheme, and informed my Department of its plans before the scheme closed in January 1995.