New Business Secretary Alok Sharma told how the Government is continuing to work towards securing a positive future for Scunthorpe’s steelworks, as he visited the headquarters within the first week of his appointment.
Mr Sharma was at British Steel site in a first 'hard hat' visit following the latest reshuffle that saw Andrea Leadsom lose the role. It wasn't quite high visibility though, with no media invite for the private tour on Tuesday.
He becomes the third Business Secretary in the time the struggling giant has been in compulsory insolvency, since debts of £880 million were revealed last May. Greg Clark oversaw the initial appointment of the Official Receiver having declined Greybull's plea for a bail-out., ahead of the summer Cabinet shake-up.
The visit came as efforts continue towards completing a deal for the Chinese Jingye Group to take over the company in a move which would secure the jobs of thousands of workers in Scunthorpe.
Mr Sharma said: “It was great to be accompanied by the new Scunthorpe MP Holly Mumby-Croft at the Scunthorpe steelworks for my very first visit as Business Secretary.
“The Government is continuing to work to secure a positive future for the business and its employees.”
They took in the rod mill and testing plant, while they also spoke to workers and management as part of an extensive tour.
Mrs Mumby-Croft, who was recently appointed as a co-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Steel and Metal-Related Industries, said: “The Government clearly has the steel industry as a firm priority and I am pleased the the Secretary of State chose Scunthorpe for his first visit as evidence of that.
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“There are clearly a number of legal matters continuing at this time, however I use every opportunity possible to ensure that our jobs and workers in Scunthorpe stay at the forefront of the Government’s mind.
“The Government announcement on HS2 has a great deal of potential for jobs in Scunthorpe and we need to ensure that we have access to the investment being made to improve the countries infrastructure.”
Jingye reached a conditional agreement with the Government to buy British Steel in November and pledged an investment package worth £1.2 billion to transform the business and secure its future.
As the agreement with unions over terms and conditions was reached in January, a statement from the National Trade Union Steel Co-ordinating Committee said Jingye intended to reduce staff numbers by up to 500 but “significant numbers” of workers had already recently left the business and discussions at department level would remain ongoing.
A deal has since been reached to sell a number of British Steel distribution centres, including one in Scunthorpe, to stockholder Barrett Steel.
It came as Energy and Clean Growth Minister Kwasi Kwarteng was also on the South Humber Bank, announcing a £90 million package to decarbonise heavy industry, with steel getting several mentions as green hydrogen is to be brought forward in the borough, initially for use by Phillips 66 but with clear scale-up opportunities highlighted.
Mr Kwarteng has also been in talks with Drax about the pioneering carbon capture and storage development for the entire Humber region as the worst polluting area looks to take the lead on the Net Zero agenda.
As reported, Jingye anticipates closing the deal in the coming weeks, with a process to go through for the French rail rolling plant at Hayange, which lasts until at least the end of February.