Coal Royalties Coal royalty owners received an unpleasant surprise in
the House of Commons on Monday when Mr. Baldwin announced the award of the Tribunal, consisting of Lord Justice Greene, Mr. Justice Clauson and Lord Plender, appointed to assess the capital value of the £4,430,000 drawn from the coal industry every year. Before the Tribunal's appointment the Government offered ‘75,000,000 in compensation ; the owners asked sums varying from £150,000,000 to LI 20,000,000 ; the Tribunal's figure, which the owners are committed to accepting, is 66,45o,000. Mr. Baldwin naturally announced that the Government accepted the award and proposed to introduce legislation immediately to acquire the owners' rights. There will be strong opposition in some Conservative quarters, and the Bill prescribing the method of the apportionment of the global sum among individual owners will be elaborate and contentious, but, when the necessary legislation has been passed, the Government will at length be in a position to press for nationalisation of the industry and to put new life into the dormant Coal Mines Reorganisation Commission.
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