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Dr - if the NUM worked with the government rather than have a war they would have been in a better position to ask for a gradual closeing of mines and money invested for start up businesses. I doubt they offered to take a 20% wage cut. The UK did not need as much coal in the 80s/90s as it did in the 50s/60s.
The UK would be a leading manufacturer of pants 7 bras if the UK government was prepared to pump in loads of taxpayers money to compeat with cheaper products. If you lose a war you can't start crying about the peace treaty. |
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Even as this long winter extended its grip, over 40% of Britain's electricity needs have been met by coal – the bulk of it now imported. But earlier this year came news that work on a new seam at Maltby had had to be suspended, because of unusually high levels of gas, and the pit was to be shut. On top of a disastrous fire at Europe's biggest producing mine at Daw Mill in Warwickshire and the mothballing – closure with the option of reopening later – in January of Aberpergwm drift mine in South Wales, this means that there are only three remaining deep mines left in operation in Britain. These are Hatfield and Kellingley in Yorkshire, and Thorseby in Nottinghamshire. Another Notts pit, Harworth, is currently mothballed. This means we are on the verge of losing both an irreplaceable skills base and, potentially, access to all the remaining coal. And this in a country now virtually dependent on gas and oil supplies from elsewhere; Britain was recently awaiting a gas supply ship from Qatar, after being days away from running out of supplies altogether.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2013/apr/11/slow-death-coal-industry now, as a fully paid up sandle-wearing yoghurt-knitting hand-wringing greenie i'd prefer us to be developing and using remewables, but if we're going to be burning the stuff anyway, and we're sitting on tonnes of it, we be better off paying folk to dig it up than paying other folk to import it? |
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This spelling business is a real worry for you isn't it, MEXICO?
Closing and compete are the correct spellings. |
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Nope - spelling on a Betfair forum is not a worry for me at all Baz.
Do you feel there is something about your personality which may have made it difficult for you to find employment, or were you happy enough living off hand outs from tax payers? |
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we be better off paying folk to dig it up than paying other folk to import it?
A lovely conundrum as Miliband has signed up to pay the EU billions in fines if we dont stop carbon emissions and we have the Drax power station having to change from coal to other fuels because of their EU fines prospects,just how would this balance with the greenie agenda ? |
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it doesn't fit the Greenie agenda, but, as the article said, we're currently reliant on coal for 40% of our eletricity right now, and as i said, we're currently sitting on tonnes of the stuff which we're too dumb to dig up.
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MEXICO'S real name is RICHARD HEAD.
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Germany is turning its back on nuclear power and increasing coal and gas burning in its power stations.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-19168574 How does that fit in with their green agenda? |
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I'll never be convinced that the nines were closed for economic reasons.
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They were in Kent.
The coal was miles from the surface, under the sea in some cases, getting it out was prohibitively expensive. Most people moaning about coal mines wouldn't know a miner from a black and white minstrel and wouldn't go down a pit for £1000 a day, they'd have shat themselves. |
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Imagine the outcry today if some of our miners were stuck underground like those in S. America.
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Given this ideological targeting of the miners it is a surprise Ken Clarke, who came from a family of miners chose to join the cabinet following the strike.
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According to NAO up to 2007 , 575,000 miners received compensation of £3.6bn in total.
Somehow the admin costs (code for rich lawyers) was £1.9bn. How much more would it have been if the NUM defeated the Thatcher government. Would any parent wish that their son (women not allowed) to work in a coal mine? |
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In the ideological,whimsical minds of the deluded left wingers we need a token group of miners to still exist so they can attend Labour party conferences dressed in togs and justify their mindless ranting about right wing politicians. Let's just dig the coal up and leave it on the surface for the sake of it as burning it would cost us even more, shades of the common agricultural policy.
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