British Steel plan lacks credibility, MPs say

British Steel plant at Scunthorpe with towering cooling towers and smoke-stacks emitting steam. Conveyor belts and railway tracks weave through the industrial landscape. There are warehouses, roads and patches of grass. The sky is bright with scattered clouds.

Image source, Getty ImagesImage caption,

British Steel was taken into public ownership in July after years of uncertainty over its future

Published58 minutes ago

The government has no credible plan for the future of British Steel, MPs have claimed.

A report by the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said the Department for Business, Innovation, Science and Trade (DBIST) had not set out how British Steel, which runs its main plant in Scunthorpe and has operations in Teeside, would become profitable.

MPs warned steel tariffs could drive firms out of business or to move abroad.

A spokesperson for DBIST said it welcomed the report and would review the recommendations, adding securing the long-term future of the UK steel sector "was in the national interest".

A 26-page report, external, published on Friday, said the government was unable to provide clear estimates of how much the overall nationalisation could cost.

It had projected costs to reach £642m by 30 June this year, but the government later said it had only been £555m.

In April last year, the government passed an emergency bill to take control of British Steel amid reports the then-owner Jingye was planning to switch off two blast furnaces in Scunthorpe.

The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill became law in July, taking the company into public ownership.

The government then published its steel strategy in March this year, which included an ambition for 50% of steel used in the UK to be made in Britain.

The strategy confirmed electric arc furnaces as the future of British steelmaking, replacing traditional blast furnaces, which resulted in job losses at steelworks including Port Talbot.

It also highlighted concerns that British Steel's 4,052 workers face uncertainty and the steel strategy is still vague about when the 50% target would be achieved.

The report said: "Without a credible long-term plan, uncertainty and costs for workers, industry and taxpayers will continue to increase."

'Higher costs'

The report also shared concerns the new tariff regime, made in a bid to boost British Steel production and usage, could cause smaller businesses to go bust.

From July, Britain lowered the tariff-free quota level for steel importers by 51% in order to stop the UK becoming a "global dumping ground".

It also doubled import taxes on steel coming into the UK above certain levels from 25% to 50%. However, firms said that some steels that they need would be affected by the tariffs, but are not able to be bought from the UK.

The PAC said: "This risks steel manufacturers having to pay tariffs on types of steel that they cannot avoid importing.

"There is a risk that businesses reliant on these products will face higher costs, which could result in smaller firms going out of business or companies moving production overseas."

The PAC said the government needed to set up a "formal route" for steel companies to raise concerns about the new tariff regime.

The DBIST spokesperson said: "Taxpayer value for money remains a central consideration in our assessment of the future of the site and we are also backing the communities that rely on it through our steel strategy to build a sustainable, competitive and decarbonised steel sector for the years ahead."

Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North.