MINERS' leader Billy Kelly has won an appeal against British Coal over redundancies at Lancashire's last remaining pit.

Parkside Colliery, Newton-le-Willows, closed in June 1993 with the loss of 750 jobs following a hard-fought campaign by miners and their wives to save it.

The miners were given an ultimatum by British Coal to accept voluntary redundancy or a transfer or face losing the package on offer.

Claims by the the National Union of Mineworkers that British Coal had failed to take adequate measures to safeguard jobs by re-deploying staff were dismissed at an industrial tribunal in Liverpool in May,1994.

But the decision has been overturned after five miners - led by Mr Kelly - took the case to an Employment Appeals Tribunal. The case will now be referred to a new Industrial Tribunal.

The Appeal Tribunal's judgment concluded: "The evidence shows that British Coal did not consider the possibility of transferring . . . outside the Parkside Group".

The judgement also states that the tribunal in Liverpool failed in its decision "to address and assess the evidence on the issue as to what British Coal could reasonably have done by way of redeployment."

Lancashire NUM General Secretary Mr Kelly has vowed that he and his four colleagues are determined to win their case at the new tribunal.

Mr Kelly said: "This gives us the chance to demonstrate to the British people how shabbily the miners were treated by British Coal working under the direct orders of Heseltine and the Tory Government.

"The timing of the closures was due to British Coal and they had enough time and resources to deal with the closures in a reasonable manner. Instead they treated the workforce, who had many years service in the industry, with utter contempt and in a matter of days they were dumped on the dole."

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