SIR – Was there ever a more poignant example of the cliche ‘falling between a rock and a hard place’ than the tragic situation now unfolding at Kellingley Colliery?

The only thing on offer is a managed closure; only slightly better than a sudden shutdown probably as early as next week, with possibly no wages, holiday or redundancy pay.

With a skilled, efficient workforce, a modern pit with almost unlimited coal reserves and customers, such as Eggborough, Drax and Ferrybridge power stations within clear sight of the pit head gear, the colliery is unviable because of the world market price of coal making it too expensive to extract.

Sadly, that is the way of things in this country today, with so many other commodities imported from areas of cheaper production, such as textiles, clothing, commercial vehicles, printed material, electrical goods, etc, with those former British industries and many thousands of jobs lost forever.

However, the fate of the miners was really set by the last Labour Government as they did nothing to help preserve either the mining industry or miners’ jobs. They closed the almost new Selby coalfield down and a lot more pits as well.

A dash for gas-fired power stations, an obsession with ‘green’ energy and billions of pounds-worth of ‘subsidy’ squandered on ‘renewables’ such as windmills, that don’t work when it isn’t windy and have to be shut down when it’s too windy also damage the long-term interests of coal.

D S Boyes, Upper Rodley Lane, Leeds