asked the Minister for Industry and Commerce if his attention has been drawn to a statement made at the Irish Trade Union Congress on the 23rd July last by a delegate from the Scottish Trade Union Congress to the effect that the average cost of provision of coal in Britain was 59/9 per ton; and, if so, if he will state if this statement is correct, and how the balance of the retail price charged for coal in Dublin is made up.
Ceisteanna—Questions Oral Answers. - Cost of Coal.
I have seen a Press report of the statement referred to but I am not in a position to verify its accuracy. The figure quoted was stated to be the total average cost of producing a ton of coal. There are numerous grades of coal produced which are sold at widely differing prices according to the quality and source, and it is not possible to make a valid comparison between an overall average cost of production figure at the pit and the retail prices charged for different types of coal in Dublin or elsewhere, or to account for the difference between these unrelated figures.