BRITISH Steel has formally been taken into public ownership, fifteen months after the government intervened to prevent the closure of its Scunthorpe steelworks and the loss of 4,000 jobs.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday that it was in the national interest for the government to take over the plant from its owner, Jingye, after the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Act received Royal Assent.
Parliament was recalled in an emergency sitting in April last year to prevent the closure of British Steel, after Jingye threatened to walk away without preserving the Lincolnshire blast furnaces, Britain’s last producer of primary steel from iron ore.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘It has long been clear that nationalisation was needed to protect jobs, skills and the wider economy. This act must now be the first step in a journey to transform our steel industry.’
GMB national secretary Charlotte Brumpton-Childs said: ‘It’s no exaggeration to say ministers have saved the UK steel industry.
‘GMB also demands a worker voice in the new nationalised company, so those who rely on the business will be in the boardroom.’
TUC general secretary Paul Nowak said: ‘This is a vital step forward for our steel industry, and one that will save thousands of jobs.
‘But more work needs to be done to ensure the long-term future of the sector, including bringing down industrial energy costs.’
Community union assistant general secretary Alasdair McDiarmid said: ‘This new law will enable steel companies to be brought into public ownership, where necessary, which will help to safeguard thousands of jobs.’
Community national secretary for steel Paul McKenna said: ‘Its swift progress through Parliament proves something Community has known for a long time, that the steel industry is a strategic national asset vital to our economy and national security.’
