'Talking shop' and 'rehash' - mayor critical of Government's new steel council launch
A new steel council launched by the Government in a bid to safeguard the future of the industry has been labelled a “talking shop” and a “rehash” by Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen.
The council brings together leaders from British Steel, Tata Steel and trade unions, along with industry experts and trade association representatives. It will advise on a steel strategy set to be mapped out by Labour in the spring, which is being backed by £2.5bn worth of funding.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds is to chair regular meetings of the council assisted by Jon Bolton, who is chairman of the Middlesbrough-based Materials Processing Institute. Mayor Houchen, who has been angered by the failure to close a deal to bring a new electric-based steelmaking facility to Lackenby previously proposed by British Steel owner, Chinese firm Jingye, said: “Endless meetings and talking shops do not create jobs, they don’t build steel plants and they certainly don’t save industries - to do that takes decisive action.
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“I have so far been patient with this Labour Government. I have given them a chance to come up with the goods on British Steel but, frankly, the lack of action is worrying. The Government needs to get off its backside and deliver a deal to build a new steel plant here in Teesside, creating thousands of jobs for our region and saving a critical strategic industry for the UK. Just get on with it.”
The mayor referred to a series of meetings aimed at plotting a path for the ailing UK steel industry that have taken place in recent years and described a “rehash” with the Steel Council having already been reconstituted under the last Conservative administration. He also claimed that as far as he was aware no further progress had been made in Government negotiations with Jingye over plans for new electric arc furnaces on Teesside and at Scunthorpe and the required investment to subsidise them.
Ministers have spent the last 12 months in talks with Jingye, which says it wants to create a “green future” for the industry in a move it is claimed would cut greenhouse gas causing carbon emissions by up to 70%.
Recent national reports suggested the Government is struggling to agree how much each side should invest with the major sticking point being the Scunthorpe plans which would require the decommissioning of the existing traditional blast furnace and where thousands of jobs are at risk.
The Government focus on Scunthorpe appears to have sidelined the Lackenby project amid claims it has been cancelled. A spokesman for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer previously said the ongoing talks were a “commercial negotiation” and “you wouldn’t expect us to give a running commentary on that”.
Asked to respond to Mr Houchen’s views, a Labour spokesman pointed to comments made by Mr Reynolds who said the steel sector had “lurched from crisis to crisis” under the Tories.
As part of the steel council announcement, Mr Reynolds said: “Steel was a neglected industry in this country under the previous Government, but with the launch of this council and our upcoming strategy, we’re proving once again that we are the Government that’s committed to driving growth and innovation in the sector.”
Mr Bolton, who was formerly a boss at Corus on Teesside and has worked in the steel industry globally for more than 40 years, said: “I see the council’s task being to develop a strategy that details the core elements of [the] investment plan [by the Government] and to establish a roadmap towards a rejuvenated, competitive and environmentally progressive industry.”
Conservative Mr Houchen has pledged to bring large scale steelmaking back to Teesside and made it a pillar of his successful re-election campaign last year. Jingye had agreed to locate the electric furnace at Lackenby, which forms part of the huge Teesworks industrial site – the former home of the Redcar steelworks, which closed in 2015 with the loss of more than 3,000 jobs.
It was due to create 250 jobs in the construction phase with a potential for a similar number once operational and more in the supply chain. The company previously said its plans were subject to “appropriate support” from the Government and “swift and decisive action” was needed to ensure a sustainable future for British Steel.
Last month Mr Houchen said: “As Scunthorpe has no grid connection and years of demolition and remediation ahead, Teesside is the only option on the table. We can put a spade in the ground in the next few weeks, we already have planning and all the things in place.”
The mayor subsequently wrote to MPs across the Tees Valley asking them to “demonstrate our joint desire to ensure steel making and local jobs in Teesside are safe-guarded”. But six Labour MPs from the area - Anna Turley for Redcar, Chris McDonald for Stockton, Jonathan Brash for Hartlepool, Luke Myer for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, Lola McEvoy for Darlington and Andy McDonald for Middlesbrough and Thornaby East – then hit back in a joint statement accusing the mayor of playing political games.
The statement said: “Labour MPs have consistently fought for the future of steel in our region. From working in the industry to chairing Steel All Party Parliament Groups and hosting Parliamentary steel summits, we’ve been at the forefront of these efforts.
“That work continues, with a determined push to secure the long-term prosperity of steelmaking on Teesside and the skilled jobs it supports. Steel is in our DNA and we’ll keep fighting for its future, but we won’t allow something so important to become a political football.”
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