Baroness Burt of Solihull
Main Page: Baroness Burt of Solihull (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Lord Stevenson of Balmacara (Lab)
My Lords, the devastating impact of job losses in the country as a result of Tata’s announcement of more than 1,000 job losses across Wales, Corby and Hartlepool is devastating news for all of the workers, their families and the close-knit communities surrounding the plants. The impact is a double whammy for Wales because steel is an industry which has contributed significantly to the added value of the economy there, adding several percentage points to GVA figures. Of course, this latest news comes on top of job losses at Tata’s Newport plant last year, along with job losses across the UK announced by a number of operators in September 2015, and the complete closure of the Redcar plant.
Steel is the foundation of many of the UK’s most important manufacturing sectors, including aerospace, defence, automotive and construction. However, the industry suffers from a perfect storm. Countries such as China are engaging in ruthlessly uncompetitive practices which are destroying the steel industry, energy prices are too high and emissions regulations are too restrictive. The Government centrally, although they are doing some work on this, still, perversely, do not require their own contractors to buy steel from the UK. The Minister, in repeating the Statement in this House, for which we are grateful to her, mentioned that there is some progress on these matters, but the general view around the country is that although progress is being made, it has sadly been too little and it has certainly come too late.
Central to ensuring that our steel industry survives and thrives is the urgent need for an industrial strategy. The Chancellor declared recently that Britain would be carried aloft by the march of its makers. But manufacturing exports have slumped and manufacturing output is still below its level of seven years ago, before the crash. There is a lot more still to be done.
I have some questions for the Minister. When did she or her colleagues raise the issue of the dumping of steel directly with the Chinese? Can she give us chapter and verse on that? Can she spell out the support from the UK Government that will be made available directly to the families and communities affected by the latest round of cuts? She said that the Government would help where they can, subject to state-aid rules—but there is a humanitarian crisis on our doorsteps and we really need to see action. What work is being done by the department on the supply chain that supports these companies affected by job losses and, presumably, reductions in activity? Many of these are small and medium-sized companies that help to keep the British steel industry going. What work will be done to support the UK buyers of output from these plants who may well now have to seek alternative supplies on the market?
The steel industry is of vital strategic importance to this country and the Government need to safeguard its future. We are very conscious that there are issues in the market of price and overcapacity, but these have been there for a long time, and we have been raising concerns about the structure of the UK steel industry for most of the previous Government and certainly during this one. Where is the action?
We are keen that the Government support key strategic industries in this country and make sure that highly skilled jobs are not lost. I hope that these sad events will trigger a reconsideration of the Government’s hostility to an industrial policy and strategy. We hope that they will get to grips with this crisis. It would be a tragedy for the steel industry if they did not, not only for those who have lost their livelihoods but for those of us who wish to make the case for modern economic progress.
Baroness Burt of Solihull (LD)
My Lords, I am sure that I represent everyone in the House when I say that our thoughts today are with the steelworkers and their families.
A major cause of this, it would seem, has been the dumping of Chinese steel. We are part of the largest trading bloc in the world, and this has been going on for a very long time. What are the Government doing to defend our interests and to fight for British steel in the EU? The noble Baroness said that some things are being done but I think that everyone would agree that we need to do more to mitigate some of the worst problems that we are going through at the moment.
The British Government need to do more, but so do the Welsh Government. My Liberal Democrat colleagues in Wales have called for scrapping business rates on planting in the Welsh steel industry. The Labour Party has criticised the Government in England but seems to have done nothing where it is in charge in Wales.
Finally, one-third of the production in Port Talbot is for the car industry—a highly successful industry. The Minister says that there is no excuse not to buy, and every reason to buy, British steel. So why does she think, given all that she said, it is not being bought?
Baroness Neville-Rolfe
I start by agreeing with how devastating today’s news is, and I agree with the statement made by the First Minister in Wales, Carwyn Jones. Our first thoughts today are with the families, communities and supply chain businesses that are dependent on steel production in Port Talbot, Llanwern and Trostre. This is a severe blow to the community and to steel production in the UK. Indeed, I welcome the task force that has been set up in Wales today, which will meet this week. That follows the model of task forces set up in other areas, such as Redcar. They have done very good work and are particularly good at focusing locally, not only on issues affecting steelworkers but on businesses in the supply chain, which are obviously vital to future jobs.
It is right to say that we have made a lot of progress since we last discussed this in the autumn. Noble Lords will remember that there were five asks from industry, trade unions and others. There are two more today. We have made substantial progress on four of those five asks, as I pointed out in my Statement. We have not made progress on rates because they are the subject of a current review by the Government. In Wales action on rates is, rightly, for the devolved Administration, as has already been said.
I was asked when the Prime Minister first raised steel in China. I know that he certainly raised the issue of steel when President Xi visited us in October. In Brussels, which I was asked about, we have of course changed our approach on steel. In the relevant committees in July and in November, for the first time we pressed for action and voted against rebar. Individual cases of Chinese and other dumping have been pursued and accelerated. There was a summit of the EU Competitiveness Council, a special meeting that took place entirely because of a request by the Secretary of State to Brussels. I think noble Lords will agree that looking at these things together in Brussels is necessary, and that the action on energy costs and industrial emissions directives has come about directly as a result of that work. These things are difficult, but we have been determined to do a lot and we have been acting in Brussels constructively.