Source · Select Committees · Business and Trade Committee
Recommendation 10
10
Governments should not be in the business of profiting from mineworkers’ pensions.
Conclusion
Governments should not be in the business of profiting from mineworkers’ pensions. We are therefore disappointed by the Government’s argument that the 1994 agreement is a success because the public purse has had strong returns from it. The Government is not a corporate entity driven by profit-motives, and should not view miners’ pensions as an opportunity to derive income. We also note that allowing the arrangement to continue would appear antithetical to the Government’s stated aim of redressing socio-economic inequality and ‘levelling up’ left-behind communities. (Paragraph 49) Changing the terms of the 1994 agreement
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
13. The Government recognises the harsh conditions in which coal miners worked and the health issues those conditions caused. At privatisation, the Government took on British Coal’s liabilities and has since compensated former miners and their families for the damage done to their health.