MPs return to Parliament to debate future of British Steel in first Saturday recall sitting since Falklands War
by Danielle de Wolfe · LBCBy Danielle de Wolfe
MPs have returned to Parliament today to vote on whether to bring British Steel under Government control - a move that marks the first Saturday recall sitting since the Falklands War.
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The decision is a bid to pass emergency legislation which could pave the way for the nationalisation of British Steel.
Both the Commons and the Lords will break from Easter recess this morning - a a highly unusual Saturday sitting that will see politicians and peers debate a Bill aimed at blocking the company’s Chinese owners, Jingye, from closing blast furnaces at its Scunthorpe plant.
The plans would see taxpayer money used to provide materials to the steelworks.
It could also open the door to a transfer ownership of the firm, after Sir Keir Starmer warned the future of the firm “hangs in the balance”.
It comes as one MP suggested British Steel owner Jingye was not negotiating “in good faith” about saving the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe.
Sarah Jones said on Saturday: “We have been negotiating with the owners of British Steel to try and secure a way forward.
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She added: “We made a very generous offer to them, which has been rejected."
"We have been acting throughout this period in good faith, but we believe that in recent times the company have not been acting in good faith."
The parliamentary recall has led many to question whether todays measures act as a 'holding pattern' until the government finds a solution that could save the firm without nationalisation.
Questions have also been raised on the impact on the taxpayer of saving British Steel - with the firm's Chinese owners claiming the plant is making "significant" losses, haemorrhaging in the region of £700,000 a day.
Ministers hope to secure a private partner to open up co-investment options for a transition but urgent temporary action was seen as necessary to keep the plant running until longer-term plans are agreed.
Speaking on Friday, Sir Keir Starmer told Downing Street the emergency recalls it so "protect" British steelmaking.
He said he "will also act in the national interest to protect British jobs and British workers".
"This afternoon, the future of British Steel hangs in the balance," Sir Keir said."Jobs, investment, growth. Our economic and national security are all on the line."
The Commons sitting will begin at 11am and the House of Lords from midday in the first parliamentary recall on a Saturday since 1982, when MPs returned after the start of the Falklands War.
Job loss fears at British Steel
Other significant recalls during recent years included a midweek sitting during the summer recess in August 2021 to debate the evacuation from Afghanistan.
In a letter to MPs shared with the PA news agency, Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle said he was satisfied the “public interest” requires the recall to debate the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill.
Jingye, which bought British Steel in 2020, has said it invested more than £1.2 billion to maintain operations amid ongoing production instability.
The Government says the new law would allow it to order raw materials for Scunthorpe’s blast furnaces amid fears supplies are on the brink of running out.
Ministers would be able to direct the company’s board and workforce, and ensure anyone at the plant “who takes steps to keep it running, against the orders of the Chinese ownership” can be reinstated if they are sacked.
The proposals to close Scunthorpe’s furnaces had sparked fears of job losses at the plant, which employs thousands of people.
Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said Jingye had confirmed the plans despite months of talks and a £500 million co-investment offer from Government, leaving ministers “no choice” but to act to spare job losses and save the plant.
Unions welcomed the move but Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accused Labour of having “bungled the negotiations” and said “their incompetence has led to a last-minute recall of Parliament.”
Liberal Democrat Sir Ed Davey called the debate an opportunity to advance “a serious plan for the sustainable future of domestic steel production” while Reform UK leader Nigel Farage reiterated his backing for nationalisation.