Written Statements

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

Wednesday 11 September 2024

Tata Steel and UK Steel Strategy

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Jonathan Reynolds)]

The Government have secured an improved deal for the workers impacted by the transformation plans of Tata Steel and are setting out their ambition for a new UK-wide steel strategy, one which equips our steel-making industry with the right support to adapt and thrive in the new green economy.

I can announce today that we have agreed a process with Tata to assess investment opportunities for new capabilities that will deliver more, secure, long-term jobs than the deal that we inherited. I will report back to the House on progress.

Tata Steel has agreed to offer a comprehensive training programme for up to 500 employees as an alternative for those at risk of compulsory redundancy. This would be on full pay for one month, then £27,000 per annum per employee for 11 months. Tata will fund those costs. Employees will be able to choose from recognised qualifications to develop sought-after skills which will be in high demand in the local economy now and long into the future.

Tata also expects that at least 500 new jobs could be created during the construction of the electric arc furnace, which will tap into the local labour market wherever possible.

The Government have helped to secure improved terms for those at risk of redundancy by working closely with unions.

Tata Steel’s employees are now able set out their expression of interest in the most generous voluntary redundancy package the company has ever offered for a restructuring of this size. Employees will now be paid 2.8 weeks of earnings for each year of service up to a maximum of 25 years.

There is also a minimum redundancy payment of £15,000 pro-rata and a “retention” payment of £5,000 for employees leaving the business because of these closures. Over 2,000 employees have expressed interest in voluntary redundancy on these terms.

As part of the deal, the company will also be releasing 385 acres of their site for sale or transfer. This is valuable real estate which will help bring in more companies and more employers not just from the steel sector but from a whole host of other industries too.

Taxpayers should know the improved terms for workforce are not dependent on additional money.

Strong conditions are included within the grant funding agreement to claw back investment if Tata Steel reneges on its promises or fails to keep its end of the bargain. For example, there is now an improved grant repayment of £40,000 for every job Tata Steel does not retain post transformation. It was £30,000 per job under the previous deal. In the event of this condition being enacted, this money will be repaid directly to the Government—a powerful incentive to ensure Tata Steel meet its 5,000 UK jobs target.

The Government know this is the start of a journey towards a greener future for the steelworks in Port Talbot—reducing the site’s carbon emissions by as much as 85% a year. However, decarbonisation should not mean deindustrialisation. As part of the agreement the Government will be working with Tata Steel over the coming weeks and months to consider business cases for further investment and job creation opportunities.

However, the Government’s ambition for steel is so much bigger and broader than one single company. It is about the whole sector. The UK has always been a proud steelmaking nation, with a rich heritage stretching back to the industrial revolution. From cars to cranes, ships and scaffolding, British steel has been and is still used the world over, embodying our industrial might and innovation. For years, steel has been a neglected industry in this country. Crude steel production has declined by more than 50% in the last 10 years. Some proclaimed the industry’s decline to be inevitable in the 21st century, but this Government do not believe that decline is inevitable. While the industry faces challenges today, we want to do everything we can to ensure that it can adapt and grow tomorrow.

That is why I am pleased to announce that the Government will introduce a new steel strategy, which will be published in spring 2025.

Our manifesto announced £2.5 billion for steel, on top of the £500 million for this transformation at Port Talbot. Our intention is to use the money we are investing to increase our UK capabilities so that we can create a more vibrant, competitive steel sector in the UK.

As part of our steel strategy, this Government will look seriously at the options to improve steel capabilities across the whole supply chain, including for primary steelmaking in the UK. We are also clear that we will not be able to prioritise short-term subsidies over long-term jobs. That is why with the help of independent experts, we will also be reviewing the viability of direct reduced iron in the UK.

Steel is essential to delivering on our net zero goals and building the next generation of green infrastructure, which Members know this Government are passionate about. It is why, as part of our steel strategy, we intend to use the new procurement Act to drive economic growth and account for social value in the things Government buy and the projects we commission. This work is already under way to increase the role of steel as we build our manufacturing base.

This Government also recognise that for far too long British energy-intensive industries, including the steel sector, have been held back by high electricity costs. More often than not, this has made the UK less attractive to international investors. The Government’s clean energy mission will ensure we are no longer exposed to the kinds of gas price shocks we have seen in recent years, helping British businesses to compete and win in the global market. To support that ambition, we are also working with like-minded nations to tackle global trade distortions, including through our chairing of the Global Forum on Steel Excess Capacity this year.

The steel strategy will be developed and delivered in partnership with the steel sector and trade unions, and it will work in lockstep with the Government’s industrial strategy. The Government’s ambition is to ramp up investment, strengthen our supply chains and create more well-paid jobs in the places where they are most needed.

To drive our partnership on the steel strategy forward, the Secretary of State for Business and Trade will shortly meet with industry experts and interested parties to discuss the future of the industry.

This Government care about steel, the communities it supports and recognise its fundamental importance to the economy.

And supporting steel in this country is about being involved in the detail, shepherding individual plants into the future while protecting the people in them. But it is also about providing a direction of travel. An inspiration for investment and a cause for confidence, so that the sector can play its part in the next 10 years and beyond.

[HCWS87]

Education and Skills Funding Agency

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for Education (Bridget Phillipson)]

Today I am announcing the closure of the Education and Skills Funding Agency on 31 March 2025. The functions of the ESFA will be integrated into the core Department for Education. The ESFA is currently an executive agency of the Department.

This will happen in two stages. Schools’ financial support and oversight functions will transfer from 1 October 2024 and be brought together with the regions group, part of the Department. This will provide a single seamless voice to schools and ensure that financial improvement is central to school improvement.

We will then centralise our funding and assurance functions into the Department for Education alongside the closure on 31 March 2025, putting certainty, support and assurance in the core of the Department.

Moving the agency functions back into the Department will bring benefits to the individuals and organisations we support as well as to the taxpayer. It will enable a single, joined-up approach to funding and regulation to improve accountability.

We will be working closely with our staff, unions, and stakeholders across the education sector to finalise and deliver our plans for closing the agency.

[HCWS83]

Water Framework Directive Regulations and River Basin Management Planning

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Emma Hardy)]

Today the Government are laying before the House our full response to the Office for Environmental Protection’s review of the implementation of the water framework directive regulations and river basin management planning.

The Government welcome the OEP’s recommendations and accept its key conclusions that not enough progress has been made by previous Governments to improve the water environment and meet the WFD objective to restore 75% of water bodies to good ecological status or good ecological potential. We face a major challenge in achieving these objectives due to years of underinvestment and insufficient action.

This Government are committed to taking action to accelerate progress on improving the water environment. There are systemic issues that require urgent reform of our water system. The Government will set out over the coming months their plans to fundamentally transform how our water system works and clean up our rivers, lakes and seas for good. This will include a review of the framework that underpins our water sector, to ensure it delivers long-term stability, and reflects the needs of customers and the environment. We expect that the OEP’s review of the WFD will be an important contribution to inform the review.

The Government response will be available on gov.uk.

[HCWS86]

Independent Review of Forensic Pathology

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

[The Secretary of State for the Home Department (Yvette Cooper)]

Today I am publishing the report of an independent review of the forensic pathology response to the Hillsborough disaster, conducted by forensic science expert Mr Glenn Taylor. Sadly, Mr Taylor passed away on 6 August 2024 and his report is being published posthumously. I would therefore first like to offer sincere condolences to Mr Taylor’s widow, and to express my profound gratitude for all the work that Mr Taylor put in to conducting this review.

Mr Taylor’s review was established in 2022, in response to a recommendation in Bishop James Jones’s 2017 report on the experiences of families bereaved by the Hillsborough stadium disaster on 15 April 1989. In 2012, the Hillsborough independent panel revealed that pathology evidence presented at the first Hillsborough inquests was flawed; this finding led to fresh inquests, and in turn a verdict in 2016 that the 97 men, women and children who tragically lost their lives as a result of the disaster were unlawfully killed. Mr Taylor’s review examined what went wrong with the original pathology reports from the Hillsborough disaster, to ensure that similar mistakes will not be made in future.

In addition to seeking evidence from professionals, Mr Taylor engaged extensively with families who lost loved ones as a result of the Hillsborough disaster, as well as of the devastating Manchester Arena attack on 22 May 2017. I am most grateful to all those family members who took the time to speak to Mr Taylor about their experiences—their powerful words throughout this report are a stark reminder of the extent to which the state failed them.

Mr Taylor found that “significant progress” has been made in the quality and depth of forensic pathology reports since the Hillsborough disaster. It is clear from this report, however, that there is more to be done and more lessons that still need to be learnt. First, family members are entirely right to expect that the pathology taken in respect of their loved ones will be explained to them and their questions answered. More needs to be done on engagement and support for families. Second, we must build resilience in our pathology services and ensure that we are adequately prepared for any future disaster. And third, we must look again at the structure of pathology in England and Wales, to ensure it best meets our needs as a public service. The Government welcome Mr Taylor’s findings and accept all six of his recommendations, which it will work at pace to deliver.

To that end, I have today written to the chair of the pathology delivery board. I have requested that the board take forward those actions that Mr Taylor identified for it immediately, and that it submits a proposed plan of action to me within 12 months. I have also tasked officials in my Department to begin work on actions directed at the Home Office immediately.

I would once again like to extend my sincere thanks to Mr Taylor’s wife for his work, and also to his team for their dedicated and sensitive approach to this matter.

The report has been laid before the House and will also be available on gov.uk.

[HCWS85]

Law Commission Digital Assets Report: Government Response

Wednesday 11th September 2024 Written Statements

[The Minister of State, Ministry of Justice (Heidi Alexander)]

My noble Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Lord Ponsonby of Shulbrede) has today made the following statement:

I am pleased to inform the House that we are taking forward the Property (Digital Assets etc.) Bill via the Law Commission’s special procedure. This recommendation was made in the “Digital Assets: Final Report” published by the Law Commission in June 2023. The Bill will confirm in statute the common law position that certain digital assets can constitute property.

Providing certainty over legal issues around digital assets will encourage the use of English and Welsh law in internationally mobile transactions. The Ministry of Justice commissioned the digital assets report in 2020 to identify any barriers to the recognition of digital assets as property under English and Welsh private law and to recommend reforms in this area of law. This work is vital to our ambition to maintain English and Welsh law as a global law of choice.

I also accept the second recommendation by the Law Commission to set up an expert group on control of digital assets. The Ministry of Justice has asked the UK Jurisdiction Taskforce, an expert group chaired by the Master of the Rolls that produces non-binding guidance on areas of legal uncertainty, to take forward this work as a body that already has an internationally credible voice in the intersection of the law and technology. I believe the UKJT is uniquely placed to convene the expertise needed to consider the issues around control of digital assets.

Finally, the report made recommendations to make statutory amendments to the Financial Collateral Arrangements Regulations and to set up a multidisciplinary project to formulate a statutory framework for the entering into, operation and enforcement of certain crypto-token and crypto-asset collateral arrangements. I understand that my colleagues in HM Treasury are reviewing these recommendations and will provide an update in due course.

[HCWS84]