COAL INDUSTRY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 62, Issue 305, 7 October 1942, Page 4

COAL INDUSTRY.

NO LARGE UNTAPPED RESERVE. MEETING BRITISH CASUALTIES. (Rec. 11.25 a.m.) LONDON, Oct. 6. When the House of Commons -resumed the discussion on the coal position to-day the maojrity of the speakers urged the Government to recall miners from the forces and industry, taking the view that it was not a question of reducing consumption but of increasing production in order to bridge the estimated gap of 11,000,000 tons between production and consumption. Winding up the debate, Sir John Anderson (Lord President of the Council) said it w;as quite false to assume that there existed to-day a large untapped reserve of miners in the services or industry, although since 1941 several thousand ex-miners had gone back-to the pits. The most that could lie released now for the mines, even including those from the field army, was 3000 or 4000. The principle cf equal sacrifices would have to apply. Battle casualties would have to be met, as they occurred, by drawing even upon reserves in vital industry such as the aircraft industry.

Sir John Anderson said that agriculture recently relinquished 10,000 men though the Government had been told it would be impossible.—British Official Wireless.