Sir Keir Starmer has said the government will debate emergency legislation on Saturday to keep the British Steel plant in Scunthorpe open as “our economic and national security is on the line”.
The prime minister added that “the future of British Steel hangs in the balance” and that legislation will be passed tomorrow to allow the government to “take control of the plant and preserve all viable options” for it.
MPs are being summoned back from Easter recess to Westminster to debate draft legislation on the plans, and will sit from 11am on Saturday.
The government had been actively considering nationalising British Steel after Jingye, its Chinese owner in Scunthorpe, cancelled future orders for the iron ore, coal and other raw materials needed to keep the last blast furnaces in the UK running.
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There had been fears the Scunthorpe plant could be forced to close as early as next month.
In a short statement delivered from Downing Street this evening, Sir Keir said: “I will always act in the national interest to protect British jobs and British workers.
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“This afternoon, the future of British Steel hangs in the balance.
“Jobs, investment, growth, our economic and national security are all on the line.”
‘A new era of global instability’
The prime minister added that he has been to the site in Scunthorpe and met the steelworkers there.
He added that he understands how “important steel is” to the “whole country” and continued: “It’s part of our national story, Part of the pride and heritage of this nation.
“And I’ll tell you this, it is essential for our future.
“(The government’s) plan for change means we need more steel, not less. So we will act with urgency… This situation and our response is unique.
“While it is true that we’re facing a new era of global instability, our concerns about this plant and negotiations to protect it have been running for years.”
Sir Keir said parliament will be recalled for a “Saturday sitting” and will “pass emergency legislation” in “one day” to give the business secretary the powers to do “everything possible to stop the closure of these blast furnaces”.
He added: “We will keep all options on the table. Our future is in our hands.”
The Lords will also return to parliament for a rare Saturday sitting tomorrow.
Following Sir Keir’s announcement, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said: “The Labour government have landed themselves in a steel crisis entirely of their own making. They’ve made poor decisions and let the unions dictate their actions.
“As business secretary, I negotiated a modernisation plan with British Steel to limit job losses and keep the plant running, including introducing an electric arc furnace in Teesside, similar to what we did with Tata at Port Talbot steelworks.
“However, the union-led Labour government have bungled the negotiations, insisting on a Scunthorpe-only deal that the company has deemed unviable. Keir Starmer should have seen this coming. But instead of addressing it earlier in the week when parliament was sitting, their incompetence has led to a last-minute recall of parliament.”
She added the government’s attempts to find a solution to the crisis are inevitably “going to cost taxpayers a lot of money”.
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