 Sir Roger Bradshaigh worked in Parliament in 1739 to defeat a bill by Sir James Lowther to reduce the duty on coal carried around the coast.Lowther owned large collieries at Whitehaven, and if the bill had succeeded, he would have monopolised the coal trade to Ireland.Whitehaven coal was carried to Dublin, but the boats returned empty, whereas boats carrying coal from the Douglas to Lancaster and Kendal returned laded with limestone and iron, enabling the more expensive Douglas coal to compete with the cheaper Whitehaven coal.