Steel Sector
Lord Jones Excerpts(1 week, 1 day ago)
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Lord Stockwood (Lab)
I am grateful to the noble Lord for the advanced sight of his follow-up question; I also commend the forensic, technical nature of the Question. The trade measure to which he refers covers 20 categories of steel, including all steel that is made in the UK. That includes bright bar, wire and stainless steel. Categories that were not covered in the steel safeguard are all now in scope. This means that the measure protects 100% of steel production domestically in the UK, whereas the steel safeguard protected only 96%. We engaged extensively with industry when developing this measure, and have sought to balance the need to protect the domestic steel-making industry while maintaining secure, reliable supply chains for downstream businesses. We will continue to engage closely with industry as we implement the measure, and we have committed to reviewing it in the next 12 months to ensure that it is entirely fit for purpose.
Lord Jones (Lab)
My Lord, can my noble friend the Minister indicate what further helpful measures there may be for this beleaguered industry in terms of energy costs? Green taxes, which are necessary, have dealt severe blows to the long-term prospects for steel, and in Wales we have seen the erosion of tens of thousands of steel jobs. I also ask him to bear in mind that rail connections between steel producers are crucial: the giant steel plant at Port Talbot in south Wales, for instance, sends a daily steel train 150 miles to north-east Wales’s Shotton works. On that train, which is 26 huge wagons long, is hot-rolled coil. If the hot-rolled coil does not reach Shotton, there will be problems. I hope that he will bear that in mind.
Lord Stockwood (Lab)
On energy prices, the transition to green energy is absolutely critical for the sector. We remain as committed as always to sovereign energy supplies that can withstand the global shocks we are seeing through Iran and the war in Ukraine. We have that commitment and the only way we can bring down energy prices is with secure domestic supply. The noble Lord made a further point around the steel strategy in Wales. I refer him to the steel strategy; it is important that our steel industry is protected in the whole of the UK. The infrastructure he mentioned remains critical to ensuring that our steel industry can be competitive in the long term.
UK Steel Strategy
Lord Jones Excerpts(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Lord Jones (Lab)
My Lords, I thank the Minister for her Statement, delivered persuasively and helpfully. What good news might be given for the steelworkers of Wales? We once had a mighty industry, up until the late 1970s. Not any more. We employed tens of thousands in that once-great industry.
The ministerial foreword by the Secretary of State and Minister of State, Messrs Kyle and McDonald, was apposite. I liked their basic statement:
“This decline is not inevitable”.
I also liked their two concluding sentences:
“Steel built our past. It will shape our future”.
Certainly, the Welsh steelworker helped to defeat the Kaiser and Adolf Hitler. We have a mighty record: a case in point now is Port Talbot. What good news might be given for the steelworkers of Wales?
I declare an interest: I worked in a giant steelworks called Shotton in north-east Wales. At its tremendous best, as late as 1980, some 14,000 worked on site. Not now: there are much less than 1,000. When I worked there, I was a common labourer. I worked on the furnace stage of number 2 blast furnace, and my role was at the point when the metal burst from the furnace base.
Baroness Lloyd of Effra (Lab)
My noble friend brings his experience and wisdom to the House. Welsh steel is expected to account for half of future UK steelmaking. As he will be aware, we have also invested £500 million in the electric arc furnace in Port Talbot. In addition to that, the Secretary of State for Wales will convene the National Wealth Fund and the private sector in a new initiative to help unlock investment in Welsh steel projects to help and support communities across Wales that rely on the industry.