Foreign Direct Investment

Lord Roberts of Llandudno Excerpts

Tuesday 10th March 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Stockwood (Lab)]

It is undeniable that there is a challenge in trying to get the balance between the energy sovereignty that I previously mentioned and the need to make us attractive in the short term. This Government are taking practical steps to reduce barriers, including targeted regulatory simplification, faster grid connections, planning reforms and action on energy costs. The energy-intensive industries exemption scheme provides 85% relief on electricity policy costs for eligible energy-intensive industries. The British industrial competitiveness scheme makes eligible firms exempt from green energy levies, and 7,000 companies come under that scheme. Trying to balance our need for sovereignty and attractiveness for investment is something to which we give careful consideration day by day.

[Lord Roberts of Llandudno (LD)]

My Lords, how confident are we in our relationship with the United States when we have a President who seems to change his mind from day to day?

[Lord Stockwood (Lab)]

It is clear that we are trying to retain long-term stability and our own attractiveness as a place for investment. The US is clearly a key partner; it has been historically and it will be in the future. We are trying to make sure that our global reputation does not focus on one relationship. I am certain that the trade deal that we are negotiating should bear fruit over the coming months.

Steel: Port Talbot

Lord Roberts of Llandudno Excerpts

Monday 15th April 2024 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Roberts of Llandudno]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the social impact of the Port Talbot steel works blast furnace’s closure on the surrounding communities.

[The Minister of State, Department for Business and Trade (Lord Johnson of Lainston) (Con)]

My Lords, the Government recognise the impact of transforming the Port Talbot steelworks. This is why we have established a transition board with membership from the local authority, the Welsh Government and Tata. The board has £100 million of funding—£80 million from the UK Government and £20 million from Tata—for projects to support the communities affected. The UK Government are contributing £500 million towards Tata’s £1.25 billion investment, to ensure a sustainable future for Welsh steel and to safeguard up to 5,000 jobs.

[Lord Roberts of Llandudno (LD)]

I thank the Minister for those remarks, but can I have an answer to one question? What assurance have we that we have sufficient electricity to work the steel plants at full capacity? Without that, we could have large-scale unemployment. South Wales has known enough of that in the past. Also, our communities could be affected. I remember how many of our local organisations lost out because of previous unemployment, being unable to take part again. There will be all sorts of consequences if we do not have full-scale working plants, and that depends on full-scale electricity supply.

[Lord Johnson of Lainston (Con)]

I thank the noble Lord for that point and agree with him. This is why we have invested significantly in developing the Celtic Freeport as an anchor for floating offshore wind. It will be sufficient to provide a large portion of the power for these two new electric arc furnaces.