Earlier this month, the King’s Speech marked a major milestone for our campaign for the introduction of legislation which will ban new coal mines. The Government formally announced the Energy Independence Bill, and with it a commitment to ‘Implement the manifesto commitment to end new coal licenses’. This is a breakthrough that Coal Action Network has specifically been working towards for over two years and is a significant step forward, but our work is far from finished.

The Bill, as currently framed, does not categorically include a ban on coal extraction from coal tips, despite significant support for its inclusion. Our legal advice shows clearly why clarification is needed with amendments to the Coal Industry Act and how to amend the Act with the upcoming legislation. Strengthening the Bill to include a full prohibition remains our top priority as it moves through Parliament.

Following the King’s Speech, both Houses began several days of debates on the Government’s programme. Across the Commons and the Lords, MPs and Peers have not only welcomed the commitment to end new coal licences but have also highlighted the need for the legislation to go further by specifically addressing coal tip extraction. Their interventions show a growing cross‑party understanding that a credible coal phase‑out must cover all forms of extraction.

We are grateful to the following Parliamentarians for highlighting coal tips in their speeches:

"I welcome the commitment to ending new coal licences in the coal licences Bill. While Wales’s coalfield communities can rightly be proud of their heritage, it is vital that we now protect them from the environmental and social harms of further extraction. That is essential for those living near the Bersham colliery spoil tip in Rhostyllen, in my constituency. Given that private companies are now seeking to mine coal tips, which would inflict the same issues on communities, this type of extraction should also be prohibited."

"The King’s Speech includes the new coal licensing ban, which is welcome. However, as I have raised before in Parliament, the proposed ban in its current form does not guarantee the prevention of commercial extraction of coal from coal tips in Wales. The Government should bring measures forward to close this loophole so that companies can never profit from the more than 2,500 tips, containing millions of tonnes of coal between them."

"Long-lasting bitterness arose when profits from coal were rarely used to Wales’s benefit, yet we were left to clear up the mess and live with dangerous tips. Please will the energy independence Bill ensure that the full costs of removing or securing remaining coal tips are not lumbered on to the Welsh Government, nor left to private companies to work residual coal in a largely unregulated way?"  

During their party conference, Plaid Cymru announced plans for their first hundred days of Government, should they win the Welsh election. Having now formed the Government, we hope to work with them and other Members of the Senedd to achieve some of those priorities. This is the last of three posts outlining opportunities which could help them to do that. Focussed on industrial emissions; Wales could be a world leader in emissions standards which creates a much cleaner, forward looking domestic industry which will be in high demand now and for decades to come.

By continuing to use coal in sectors where it can be more challenging to replace it, like cement production, risks just offshoring the mining – and the pollution – abroad. Alongside the new electric arc furnace for steel production at Port Talbot, a low-carbon cement sector would create a heavy industry in Wales ready for a Net-Zero economy. This would also open up export markets for Welsh industry to meet the growing demand for green steel and cement in the EU, driven by the incoming mandatory lifecycle carbon reporting for buildings and green standards.

Meanwhile, Wales’s mining legacy means large amounts of abandoned mine methane are leaking from coal seams long after mining has finished. Rapidly reducing these leaks is vital for a stable climate, especially since former Welsh mines produce an estimated 49% of the UK’s abandoned mine methane.

The Government’s industrial strategy must support Wales’ two cement works to switch coal for alternative fuels and use different ingredients for cement clinker to reduce the energy needed to make cement. Negotiating this with stakeholders early on will be key to leading the way in industrial decarbonisation.

The EU has already set rules to mitigate methane leaks by 2030; Wales should adopt similar rules to stop the leakage here.

These recommendations would help the new Government in the following areas of Plaid Cymru's first 100 days commitments:

• Economy – The job of a new National Development Agency should include cleaning up heavy industry. Replacing coal in the cement industry would make Wales an international leader. The expert panel setting up this agency should include specialists in industrial decarbonisation.

• Tackling the climate and nature emergencies – The Climate and Nature Action Plan for Wales should include plans to stop Abandoned Mine Methane leaks. Since we are not directly measuring how much methane is leaking into the air right now, solving this is a vital part of reaching net zero.

Deep/Underground coal mines

• METHANE: As the name suggests, mining goes deep underground where there are often higher concentrations of methane that are stored there under the pressure of the rocks and soil above it. Excavation allows that methane to escape (fugitive methane emissions) into our atmosphere. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas. Even after coal mining has finished, deep coal mines can continue leaking methane gas for decades, driving climate chaos and posing dangers to the public of explosion and suffocation near to shafts. Internationally, there is growing awareness of this issue and attempts to monitor and control leakage, but progress is slow. An estimated 40 million tonnes of methane leaked from coal mines in 2024.
• SURFACE STABILITY: When mining stops so does pumping water out to keep the mines dry. As the water slowly fills the mine from surrounding soil up to the water table, it can -along with time - it can cause the collapse of the pillars left in underground mining to hold up the roof of underground tunnels. This can then create 'sink holes' on the surface, and subsidence for houses built above tunnels. With the location of earlier mining works often undocumented, it is not always possible to assess the risks.
• WATER POLLUTION: When deep mines close, pumping out the water is stopped and the water levels rebound up to the 'water-table'. As water fills the mining tunnels and shafts, it reacts with minerals like pyrite, creating acidic, iron-rich water which can kill aquatic live if it enters rivers as well as pollute drinking water. At a number of mines around the UK, the Mining Remediation Authority pumps up mine water to clean it, then return it to the mine.
• UNCOVERED MINE SHAFTS: known as 'adits', these are vertical or near vertical shafts that can go down a long way - originally used with a lift system to lower miners to the right levels to dig horizonal tunnels along coal seams. As records have been lost or were never created for the earlier coal mines, not all the adits are known. This presents a falling danger for walkers or explorers. If you see an uncovered adit, please report it to the Mining Remediation Authority.

Opencast coal mines

• SOIL DEGRADATION: Unlike deep coal mines, opencast coal mines strip away large areas of vegetation, top soil, sub-soil, rocks, and non-target coal (called 'overburden') to get at the target coal beneath it. UK planning policy now requires mining companies to store these different layers separately and avoid compaction so they can be replaced like a lasagne after coal mining ceases. In reality, though, they are often mixed and compacted, drastically reducing their fertility and the viability of agriculture or nature return for decades. Over 70% of mined land globally suffers from soil degradation.
• FLOODED VOIDS: Opencast coal mining creates bowl-like voids in the earth with a track spiralling down around the edge of the void for HGVs to access the sides and bottom and carry the 'overburden' and coal out of the void. These voids can be huge. It is a conditional of planning permission for an opencast coal mine that once mining ends, the company refills the void with the 'overburden' they removed, leaving a level surface. However, the coal has been carried away and burned so additional "soil-forming material" would be needed to refill the void completely. This can be expensive, along with moving millions of cubic metres of overburden from where it has been dumped back into the void. This part of restoration alone can cost up to £100 million. As mining has finished by this point, there is no further profit to be made and the incentive for mining companies to evade delivering on their agreement keep that money means a degraded landscape and voids and are more often left behind to slowly flood from ground water and rain. Although these are euphemistically called 'lakes' by mining companies, these unplanned and huge bodies of water represent a flood worry for nearby communites and can be a hazard for swimmers as the water is very deep and cold. Due to the exposed coal face, some water bodies also test for hightened levels of metal pollutants.
• NOISE AND DUST: As the name indicates, opencast coal mines are open to the air and wind. Where explosive 'blasting' methods are used to expose coal seams, the sound and shockwaves isn't shielded by the surrounding ground as it is in underground mines. Dust from blasting and from HGV movements can be carried significant distances by the wind. Together, these activities can severely impact nearby residents. Where the dust is from the coal, it can also carry heavy metals that pose a health risk, particularly to asthma sufferers.

Both

• COAL TIPS: often referred to as coal tips for deep mines and overburden mounds for opencast coal mines, they are similar in composition and risks. These tips are where everything is dumped that is between the mining company and the target coal - vegetation, top soil, sub-soil, rocks, and non-target coal. These tips can be colossal in size, and some earlier ones have now settled and revegetated to such a degree that it is unrecognisable as a tip. However, both new and old tips suffer long-term stability risks, particularly as rainfall increases with climate change. The last tragedy to occur from coal tip was the Aberfan disaster of 1966, where coal tip became unstable during heavy rain and slipped down a valley into a school, killing 144 children and teachers. However, since 2020 there have been two near misses, also in South Wales. In wales, there is a new multi-million pound scheme to monitor tips for slippage and carry out stabilisation works if needed, to avoid further slips that could end in tragedy.

Published: 01.05.2026

As part of our Politics Unspun series we are unpacking politicians' public comments on coal to challenge any misleading or incorrect messages.

Todays' focus is on comments made in a BBC interview during the Senedd election campaign about coal mining in Wales. During the interview, Reform UK candidate in Afan Ogwr Rhondda, Ben Hodge-McKenna, made some statements about coal mining which we would like to address as part of this series.

Mr Hodge-McKenna claimed that reopening Welsh coal mines could help meet the UK’s energy needs. However, the UK no longer operates any coal‑fired power stations and the country’s energy strategy is now centred on renewables, storage, and electrification. Coal has not been a major part of the UK energy mix for almost a decade and Welsh coal cannot substitute for modern low‑carbon energy systems. Reopening mines would not contribute to UK energy security.

"It doesn't make sense for us to be sabotaging our economic policy and sacrificing jobs in Wales when you have other countries around the world that are ramping up,"

Reopening mines now would not recreate the large, long‑term workforces of the past. Modern mining is highly mechanised, and any jobs created would be limited and short‑lived, particularly due to the decreasing demand for coal in the UK. Aside from this though, the UK Government will soon legislate a prohibition of new coal mining licences, making new mining activities impossible approve in Wales or anywhere in the UK.

In contrast, Wales’s growing renewable energy sector offers larger, more stable employment opportunities which offer long term jobs in an expanding industry to workers today and in years to come.

Mr Hodge-McKenna said he understood the concerns about climate change, but the emissions that are produced in Wales on a global scale "are absolutely minuscule" meaning any changes would have "virtually no impact".

Regardless of other countries ramping up their coal production, it is in our own economic interest to pursue a clean energy future. All countries could, and some do, avoid taking action because of larger current or historic emissions being produced by another country. Wales can only control its own coal production and be the example to other countries as to how to transition in a just way which benefits workers, communities and the climate.

"I don't think anybody's talking about sort of going back to the 70s or 80s and reopening mines in the conditions that they were previously. But if there are commercial opportunities to enjoy the natural resources that we have then we shouldn't be automatically closed off to any options without at least giving them a fair consideration,"

While safety standards in coal mining have improved, this does not address the core issue: coal is the highest‑emitting fossil fuel. The UK’s climate commitments require rapid reductions in emissions, and new coal extraction would run counter to those goals. Additionally, Wales still faces safety risks from legacy coal infrastructure, such as abandoned opencast sites and unstable tips which require ongoing management.

Improved safety conditions in mining do not change the environmental and climate impacts associated with burning coal.

As part of our Politics Unspun series we are unpacking politicians' public comments on coal to challenge any misleading or incorrect messages.

Todays' focus is on comments made during a Westminster Hall debate in December about the oil refining sector. During the debate, Lee Anderson MP made some statements about coal use and extraction which we would like to address as part of this series.

In summary, Mr Anderson’s views in this debate appear to cling to the positives of the coal mining industry without accepting its negatives. These views do not accept contemporary scientific, economic or legal realities and do not consider either the worsening impacts of climate change if the world does not transition from coal, or the vast opportunities that a just transition offers society.

"I worked in the coal mines in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire, and the whole industry was decimated by the Conservative Government at the time… What the Government did not realise at the time is that when they got rid of a coalmine—each coalmine had a football team, a rugby team, a cricket team, a community club, a miners’ welfare, a brass band and a bandstand in the local welfare grounds—it destroyed whole communities, and those communities will never come back. They will never be the same again."

We absolutely agree with Mr Anderson’s initial statement; the destruction of Britain’s coal communities in the 1980s was profound, lasting, and traumatic. The way the Thatcher Government closed the mines is now taught internationally as a case study in how not to transition from coal; a warning about what happens when governments shut down an industry without planning for new jobs, new skills, or new economic purpose.

This is why we are surprised that he now forgives Thatcher’s economic policies which directly led to the closure of the pits in such a destructive way. The 1980s mine closures were not inevitable, they were damaging political choices – choices which he now appears to support.

While we want to see the end of coal mining in the UK and elsewhere, we campaign for just transitions which benefit workers and communities. The answer is not to just reopen the pits, but to replace those jobs in industries which aide our transition to clean energy.

"It is all well and good saying to somebody, “It’s okay, you can make windmills or solar panels,” or, “We’ll retrain you in green energy,” but they do not want that. This lot do not understand that there are still men and women in this country who want to get up in the morning and go do a proper day’s graft. I have been one of those working men who gets up in the morning at 5 o’clock and goes and does a dirty, horrible, dangerous job. I know what it is like to come home, after doing a horrible shift on a horrible job. I know what the people in these communities feel like."

Communities deserve better than being told their only future is their past. Mr Anderson paints a picture of working‑class pride rooted in dangerous, exhausting labour. But why should workers be condemned to work in ‘dirty, horrible, dangerous jobs’? Pride does not require danger and we should expect more than that now that we have alternatives. Community does not require coal dust and dignity does not require repeating the mistakes of the 1980s.

He seems to suggest that the electricians, welders, engineers and other workers who are installing solar farms and wind turbines do not ‘do a proper day’s graft’. A real pro‑worker position would be to invest in tomorrow’s industries in former coal regions, guaranteeing secure well‑paid jobs for years to come which support community institutions directly AND protect workers from dangerous conditions.

The lesson of the 1980s is not that we should cling to coal. It is that when transitions are done badly, communities suffer—and when they are done well, communities thrive. Mr Anderson is right to honour the miners. But honouring them means fighting for the future of those communities, not chaining them to their past.

"I have heard colleagues talk about “net stupid zero” in the past. We think the targets should be scrapped; we are not against trying different sources of energy to fuel our nation. We are saying we should have a sensible transition. China has got it right: it is burning coal. China is opening coal mines and using coal-fired power stations."

Mr Anderson appears to be contradicting himself within two sentences. ‘We should have a sensible transition’ but ‘China has got it right: it is burning coal’. A ‘sensible’, or just, transition is not what happened in the 1980s, but reopening coal mines and coal power stations now, when the UK has already transitioned from them, would be counter intuitive.

Our view is that China should also be transitioning from coal use and extraction. But pointing to China’s coal use is a way of excusing inaction at home. The Chinese Government should do more to decrease coal use in China. Lee Anderson is a Member of the UK Parliament though and should be helping his community to benefit from the energy transition we are in the midst of.

The Government is reforming planning policy in England and thanks to thousands of our supporters asking for an end to coal extraction in the last consultation in 2024, they are now recommending that planners "should not identify new sites or extensions to existing sites for peat or coal extraction". The Government is now running a consultation on its latest draft which includes this wording.

So it's time for our supporters to take action again and prove that the Government is well supported to prohibit coal extraction. If we flood the consultation with supportive submissions for this particular policy, we will certainly drown out any pro fossil fuel voices seeking to change the Government's mind.

Please take two minutes of your time to send our template submission by the deadline of 10th March 2026.

We got internationally renowned foresnic accountants, C. Lewis & Company, to analyse mining company Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd's accounts. Guess what? Not only can the mining company afford the full restoration, it has even set the money aside for it, and it can't legally spend it on anything else... unless the Council agrees to downgrade the restoration by granting the company's cut-price restoration application.

It's a stitch up! Don't let it happen

The new proposal was published on Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council's website on Friday 21/02/2025. It is a plan to do as little as possible that would justify the company getting its hands on the £15 million currently held by the Council in an ESCROW account. But that £15 million was only intended to cover the barest necessities to make the site safe in case Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd goes bust. Merthyr (South Wales) Ltd hasn't gone bust though, and should be stumping up around £75-110 million to pay for the restoration.

1. Leave behind a flooded mining void (the void is 175m deep at one end) with capacity for 1 million cubic metres of water
2. Leave behind 3 overburden mounds (coal tips) containing approx 37 million cubic metres of colliery spoil, rock, and soil - around just 2.8 miles from the site of the Aberfan disaster, where a coal tip collapsed, killing 144 people. This would permanently alter the landscape beyond recognition from what it was before and the surrounding landscape.
3. Leave behind a huge exposed coal-face cliff. Other than being an eyesore for local people, rain will cause erosion over years expected to leach heavy metals and toxic elements from the coal into the flooded mining void that will discharge into local waterways.
4. An aftercare period of just 5 years - this must be at least 15 years to ensure any woodland planting that hasn't survived can be replaced and nurtured to maturity.

In November 2024, the new UK Government announced its intention to legislate a ban of new coal mining licences – which we welcomed. Over a year later, the legislation is yet to be introduced, and the Government is not planning to include all types of extraction.

2026 needs to be the year that ALL coal extraction is banned. Here’s Why that is, and How it can be done:

May’s local authority and devolved Government elections will possibly see gains for pro coal candidates. This could result in local authorities across the UK and possibly even the Welsh Government being run by Councillors and Members who are part of a party that has stated its aim to re-open coal mines. While this is impossible in many circumstances; Britain’s 5,000 coal tips are within reach.

The current Welsh Government’s Coal Policy adds a level of scrutiny to potentially prevent coal tip extraction, but a new Government could abandon this policy and approve many of Wales’ 2,590 coal tips to be mined if they have been given approval by local authorities. In England, only local authorities need to approve coal tip extraction- using the same framework which Cumbria County Council used to approve the West Cumbria coal mine.

With more local authorities likely to be led by pro coal Councillors, now is the time to ensure that ALL types of coal extraction are treated equally, banned nationally and that the ban is legislated before any coal tips are approved to be mined by local authorities.

Coal Action Network commissioned leading environmental Barristers Rowan Clapp and Estelle Dehon KC to draft the precise wording of amendments to the Coal Industry Act 1994. This advice showed that relatively minor amendments could be made whilst legislating the coal licence ban to achieve this aim. This advice has been shared with the Government.

Referring to the coal policies of devolved Governments, Energy Minister Michael Shanks told us during a Westminster Hall debate in October; “Their firm view is that they can bring into effect the aim of the Welsh Government and the UK Government to make sure that extraction of coal is a thing of the past. Their view is that their existing powers do that.”

Coal Action Network does not agree that existing powers do prevent further extraction due to the reasons mentioned above. Therefore, we are reaching out to Westminster and the devolved Governments. The Welsh Government in particular needs to consider the wider implications of banning coal tip extraction across the UK. While their coal policy could prevent 2,590 coal tips in Wales from being exploited whilst it is adhered to by a Government which seeks the end of coal; their advocacy for the inclusion of coal tips in this Westminster legislation could almost double their impact by expanding that ban to the other 2,400 coal tips throughout the rest of the UK.

Members of Parliament

• Ask when the Government plans to introduce the coal licence ban legislation. Request that it is introduced in 2026 - particularly as Colombia hosts the world's first fossil fuel transition Conference in April.
• Welsh MPs can write to the Welsh Government asking it to advocate for the Westminster coal licence ban to include coal tips.
• English MPs can highlight to DESNZ that the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) could still allow the extraction of coal tips. Hence the need for the coal licence ban to include our suggested amendments.
• Scottish MPs can write to the Scottish Government asking it to advocate for the Westminster coal licence ban to include coal tips.

Members of the Senedd

• Ask the Welsh Government to advocate for the Westminster coal licence ban to include coal tips. They should do this for two reasons:
  • To expand the impact of the Welsh coal policy beyond Wales’ 2,590 coal tips to all 5,000 coal tips across the UK.
  • To safeguard against the possibility of pro coal parties taking power at local and national levels, in Wales and the rest of the UK.

Members of the Scottish Parliament

• Ask the Scottish Government to advocate for the Westminster coal licence ban to include coal tips. They should do this for two reasons:
  • To expand the impact of Scotland’s position against coal extraction to protect all 5,000 coal tips across the UK from being mined.
  • To safeguard against the possibility of pro coal parties taking power at local and national levels, in Scotland and the rest of the UK.