Coatbridge & Bellshill MP Frank McNally addressed a gathering of former miners, trade unionists, local schools, religious leaders and residents of the community at the mining memorial at Auchengeich Miners’ Welfare Club.
The event at the Moodiesburn site marked the 65th anniversary of the Auchengeich mining disaster, which tragically claimed the lives of 47 men.
A memorial service is held by Auchengeich Miners Memorial Committee each September to commemorate the victims.
This year’s service was chaired by Willie Doolan and featured dedications from Frank McNally MP, trade union speakers and ministers and priests from the local parishes.
Hymns were provided by a joint choir from Glenmanor and St Michael’s primary schools and the Parkhead Salvation Army Band.
Mr McNally paid tribute to the miners who perished in the tragedy – and their families – and spoke of the integral part that coal mining played in communities like Moodiesburn, and in the prosperity of Lanarkshire and Scotland as a whole.
Commenting following the memorial, the MP told Lanarkshire Live: “The Auchengeich Miners Memorial Committee have once again put on a poignant and thoughtful service to commemorate the fallen miners of the 1959 Auchengeich mining disaster.
“Hundreds of people came from near and far to pay their respects to the men who paid the ultimate price while working to power the nation and bring us prosperity.
“With each passing year, the determination of the community in Moodiesburn to mark the tragedy never weakens, which shows the strength of that local community.
“I was proud to dedicate my remarks to the fallen miners and their families at the memorial service, and I am determined to ensure the longstanding injustice of the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme is finally addressed through reforms – and to finally bring justice for those who were unjustly targeted and convicted during the 1984-5 Miners Strike.”
Mr McNally submitted an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons to mark the anniversary of the disaster, and recently joined the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Coalfield Communities, a body with objectives to “further economic, social and cultural development of the UK’s former coalfield communities” alongside other partners.
*Don’t miss the latest headlines from around Lanarkshire. Sign up to our newsletters here.
And did you know Lanarkshire Live had its own app? Download yours for free here.