British Industry Supercharger: Ceramics

Debate between Adam Jogee and Peter Kyle

Thursday 9th July 2026 Commons Chamber

[Adam Jogee]

Before the Secretary of State concludes, I thank him for his engagement, his respect towards me, as the Member for Newcastle-under-Lyme, and my Staffordshire colleagues, and for his support on this important issue. We would not have that £120 million package without his tenacity, and his encouragement to our colleagues in His Majesty’s Treasury. For that, we are very grateful.

[Peter Kyle]

That was a very gracious intervention—I am glad I took it. I had the pleasure of visiting my hon. Friend’s constituency in the run-up to the general election, and I saw how much hard work and dedication he put into his campaign; I have also seen the clear-sighted representation, and heard the voice, that he has provided since coming to this place.

Announcing these schemes is never easy. When we are minded to provide support, is difficult to go through the process without setting hares running or setting expectations too high. When there is ambiguity in the process, we appreciate, when we get to the other side, just how sincere everyone is at moments like this. In this Government and in me, hon. Members have a Government and a Secretary of State who strive, and put great store by the heritage and importance of certain businesses and sectors—not just the economic wellbeing of communities, but the social and cultural wellbeing of communities. Those are all interlinked, and we fail to recognise that at our peril.

The ceramics industry deserves support, and this Government have demonstrated that through the £120 million package. We have chosen to deliver support through the ceramics industry support scheme to enable the industry to modernise, decarbonise and optimise, protecting the long-term competitiveness of the sector in the most efficient way. I thank all my parliamentary colleagues who advocated for that support. The Department, other Ministers and I look forward to continuing to work with Members as we develop the scheme and get it ready for deployment.

Despite a difficult business environment, the ceramics sector continues to demonstrate resilience and innovation, and I remain confident in the future of this important industry. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central once again for securing this debate, and other Members for their interventions.

Question put and agreed to.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Adam Jogee and Peter Kyle

Thursday 21st May 2026 Commons Chamber

[Adam Jogee (Newcastle-under-Lyme) (Lab)]

I am delighted that the Government have listened to my calls, and those of my neighbours in Stoke-on-Trent, to finally act to support the ceramics industry—calls so loud that my hon. Friend the Member for Stoke-on-Trent Central (Gareth Snell) has lost his voice. While we await the detail, will the Secretary of State come to North Staffordshire to meet the ceramics businesses that he and this Government are helping today?

[Peter Kyle]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his comments. The package that we are announcing today will be significant. I will not say any more, because the Chancellor will be making that announcement later. I can say, however, that the boldness of the package is a direct consequence of the voices that we have heard from MPs, including from my hon. Friend and others in Stoke—whether losing their voice or not. Those voices have been profoundly important to the scope, scale and boldness of what will be announced today.

British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme

Debate between Adam Jogee and Peter Kyle

Thursday 16th April 2026 Commons Chamber

[Peter Kyle]

I am highly aware of my hon. Friend’s advocacy for those sectors; she is a true credit to them. The BIC scheme is about competitiveness. It has been designed in co-operation and partnership with business. Only one in 10 businesses in our country is exporting, but we have secured great trade deals with South Korea through to India, as well as the economic prosperity deal with America, and of course we are continuously rebuilding the relationship and creating new opportunities with the European Union—the most important trading bloc. I can assure her that the BIC scheme is part of making us even more competitive and more able to prosper on the global trading scene.

[Adam Jogee (Newcastle-under-Lyme) (Lab)]

The font of this statement is so small that it is super difficult to read, which made it even more difficult for me to look for the word “ceramics”, which I have yet to find. The Secretary of State said in his statement that he wants to “move faster” to support British manufacturing. He has heard from a number of my colleagues, and now he will hear from me, that we want to meet him. We have met Ministers—we had an excellent visit with the Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade, my hon. Friend the Member for Stockton North (Chris McDonald)—but we want to see the Secretary of State, so that we can talk about this scheme and the ceramics industry. We need to have that meeting quickly, because this is about the jobs, livelihoods and future of my community and many others across our country.

[Peter Kyle]

I know that my hon. Friend has had meetings with several of my Ministers, and of course I am always available for him too.