Local MPs Marcus Jones (Nuneaton) and Dan Byles (North Warwickshire) have recently been on a visit to the Daw Mill Colliery where they met miners, managers and went to the coal face.

The pit is located on the border of the two constituencies and therefore is of great interest to both MPs. The MPs were given a comprehensive health and safety briefing and were issued with overalls, boots, hardhats and lamps. They then descended to meet workers on the coal face, an incredible 850 metres underground.   

The journey to their destination took approximately 45 minutes. Five minutes in a lift, twenty minutes on a miniature train and then, for the final leg, they were transferred to a passenger transporter (a large 4X4 type vehicle) where they drove for a further twenty minutes to the actual coal seam being mined.

The colliery employs some 700 people and, with the coal seam currently being mined at over 200 metres long, is the largest in Europe.

Commenting on the visit, Marcus said: “I was astounded at seeing life at the coal seam and am immensely grateful to the workers who made the visit such an eye-opening experience. The miners are a great bunch of lads, all very passionate and many with strong views about their industry and the future for it.

“They were particularly concerned that whilst currently going strong at Daw Mill, mining is an industry which had been all but forgotten – despite the fact that much of our electricity is still being generated by coal fired power stations.

“As a member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Clean Coal I am aware of the importance of Daw Mill and recognise that coal is still currently an integral part of our country’s energy security. The Government also recognises this and has pledged investment of £1bn to develop carbon capture and storage, which could lead to the long term retention of coal as a source of power generation.”

Dan Byles, the MP for North Warwickshire, added: ““This was my second visit to Daw Mill and it remains an incredible experience. While many politicians and campaigners are pushing hard for the UK to reduce our CO2 emissions by generating more power through wind and other renewable energy sources, we mustn’t forget the need to keep the lights on. The coal reserves under the ground at Daw Mill could last for decades at least, if not longer, and that represents a very important strategic reserve.

“I sincerely hope that UK Coal will continue to put in the investment needed to keep Daw Mill going, and Marcus and I will do all we can to support the pit and the hundreds of miners who still toil tirelessly day and night far beneath the M6. Daw Mill is the last deep mine in the West Midlands and is an incredible engineering operation, and I am proud that we have it here in our community.”