WHILE there are no coalmines in Bolton these days there are certainly plenty of ex miners around who suffered the detrimental effects of working in coal.

The Government has introduced a scheme to provide compensation for those who have endured the ill health that the digging of coal caused.

Whilst payments are being made they are not coming through quickly enough and I have urged the energy minister Brian Wilson to speed up coal health compensation claims. I have asked him to look into the cases of the most frail live miners and widows as matter of urgency before many of the claimants die.

To his credit he has got things moving already and the Government has paid out £630 million on the two main schemes of respiratory disease and vibration white finger. There are nearly 170,000 respiratory claimants, and 131,000 for vibration white finger with around 900 claims a week coming in for respiratory disease and 300 for vibration white finger. More than 48,000 medical assessments have now been completed, with over 1,000 further assessments now taking place each week.

In my Bolton North East constituency out of the 101 claims received for respiratory disease 44 have received either full or interim payments and 13 out of 27 vibration white finger claimants have received some kind of settlement.

We need to build on the good work done in compensating former miners and their families and whilst I appreciate that all claims cannot be settled quickly we need to ensure that priority is given to very sick claimants and widows.

I have moved my Constituency Office to 570 Blackburn Road, Bolton, BL1 7AL and the new telephone number is 01204 303340. My next surgery will take place on the 1st March at Bolton Town Hall from 4.30pm to 6.30pm and everyone who attends will be seen.

David Crausby MP