Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer has visited British Steel’s Scunthorpe site to discuss the significant challenges faced by Britain’s steelmakers.
British Steel is the UK’s only manufacturer of structural sections, which it supplies into three out of four major construction projects in this country, and is the only company in the UK which makes rail and special profiles. In addition to this, it provides thousands of highly skilled and well-paid jobs while an estimated 19,000 people are employed in its supply chain.
During its first three years of ownership, Jingye has invested £330 million in capital projects at British Steel.
The company says its decarbonisation strategy is underpinned by a Low-Carbon Roadmap which will help secure low embedded carbon steelmaking in the UK. A spokesman for the company said: “However, we need the UK to adopt the correct policies and frameworks now to back our drive to become a clean, green, and successful company. Governments in the countries where our major competitors operate have adopted such policies and the longer we wait for their implementation in the UK, the more impact this will have on our competitiveness and the country’s ability to meet its carbon objectives.”
Alun Davies, National Officer for Community, the steelworkers’ union, said: “It was good to meet today with Keir and discuss Labour’s plans to deliver a decarbonised steel industry at the core of an ambitious industrial strategy. Britain needs its steel industry and Britain’s steelworkers need government to do far more to support our steelmakers to go green and prosper. All us steelworkers ask is the chance to compete on a level playing field with EU producers.”
Sir Keir was joined on his visit by Ed Miliband MP, Shadow Secretary of State of Climate Change and Net Zero, and Sir Nic Dakin.
