Steelworkers
and union officials march down Whitehall in London to take part in a protest
outside the Houses of Parliament, Westminster, calling for more help for the
industry as new figures show almost 150,000 jobs have been lost in the industry
over the past 40 years, June 28, 2023
THE Tories were accused today of not believing in
Britain’s steel industry, the day after hundreds of steelworkers demonstrated
in Westminster to demand state support.
MPs raised fears that the “worryingly slow” government will fail
to stop 20 million tonnes of steel from outside the European Union flooding the
British market, following a warning from Unite general secretary Sharon Graham
on Wednesday that the industry was on the “very precipice.”
Shadow business and industry minister Bill Esterton pointed out
that Britain is the only G20 country where steel production is falling.
He said every other government in the G7 insists on using
domestic steel in defence contracts and that Britain’s steel producers pay 62
per cent more for electricity than their German counterparts.
Claiming that his party’s £3 billion green steel plan would
provide a “bright future” for the industry, he told the Commons: “Labour
believes in our steel. Why doesn't this government?”
Labour MP Stephen Kinnock, whose Aberavon constituency includes
Britain’s biggest steelworks, added: “Hundreds of steelworkers gathered in
Westminster to make it absolutely clear the government is not doing enough,
particularly when compared to competitor nations in investing in the transition
to de-carbonised steel — the numbers on that do not lie.
“But the government is also worryingly slow, we feel, on
introducing a carbon border adjustment mechanism.”
He said trade body UK Steel estimates that almost 20 million
tonnes of non-EU steel could flood the market if the government does not
introduce a carbon tariff on energy-intensive imports at the same time as the
EU in 2026, adding: “When will we see the government stepping up and investing
in green steel, as they are in competitor countries, and when can we expect the
introduction of a British sea ban?"
Industry Minister Nusrat Ghani insisted that the government
supported the industry, adding that it would respond to a recent consultation
on a sea ban in due course.