INEOS Chemicals: Grangemouth

Graham Leadbitter Excerpts

Wednesday 17th December 2025 Commons Chamber

[Chris McDonald]

My hon. Friend is correct that the Government’s decision here and their previous industrial strategy decisions have been in marked contrast to the decisions of the Scottish National party and the Conservatives previously.

There is something astonishing about this. I know that the Conservatives are hidebound by their free market ideology, which means that they are prepared to let British businesses and jobs go to the wall, but surely they should stand up for things like defence and national security, for which these businesses are so vital? They support our defence supply chains, as well as health and water. It should be natural for the Conservatives to stand up for things like that. The past inaction of the Conservatives and the SNP on this issue has been astonishing. The big message to the voters of Scotland is: vote Labour in the spring.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

I know that Government Members forget which Parliament they are actually in—who knows, maybe they would feel better in the Scottish Parliament.

This is a welcome announcement. For months now, the Scottish Government have been calling on the UK Government to intervene to protect jobs at Grangemouth and Mossmorran at a scale seen in other parts of the UK. The news will give some much needed Christmas cheer, at least to the Grangemouth community and the workers at Ineos Olefins & Polymers. Last week the Scottish Government, jointly with the UK Government and Celtic Renewables, announced an £8.5 million investment at the Grangemouth industrial cluster, including in MiAlgae. That will create up to 460 jobs, demonstrating that a long-term industrial future at the site is achievable. We will continue to do all we can within the limited powers that the Scottish Parliament has.

However, the announcement today does not help those at the neighbouring refinery whose jobs have already been lost. Although there may be some crossover support for nearby Mossmorran workers, there is still a substantial gap in support. Will the Minister finally accept that one of the most fundamental causes of the need for support is the fiscal regime being inflicted on oil and gas and the use of the energy profits levy, which make a just transition a near impossibility?

[Chris McDonald]

The hon. Gentleman mentions the refinery; as I said earlier, Ineos made the final decision to close the refinery in November 2023, having provided data for years to the Conservative Government in Westminster and the SNP in Holyrood, who said and did nothing.

The hon. Gentleman talks about the scale of investment; I am really surprised, to be honest, that he has not raised that even more firmly. We are talking about a complete package of investment in Grangemouth, announced by this Government, that approaches half a billion pounds: £100 million in the summer, £200 million from the National Wealth Fund, £14.5 million in the Budget and £150 million in this package. That is only a rounding error shy of half a billion pounds for Grangemouth. I would have thought that the SNP would at least acknowledge that.

Oral Answers to Questions

Graham Leadbitter Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Michael Shanks]

I pay tribute to my hon. Friend, who has worked extremely hard with the Government and with the national wealth fund to ensure that we are bringing projects forward. More than 100 projects came forward for that £200 million investment by this Labour Government through the wealth fund; we are considering all of them, and hope to make announcements soon. However, as my hon. Friend will understand, given the substantial amounts of public money involved, we must ensure that due diligence in respect of all those businesses and projects is complete before we can make any announcements.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

In the light of the deeply damaging situation at Mossmorran, what is the Minister’s assessment of the potential impact on the Acorn carbon capture, utilisation and storage project?

[Michael Shanks]

We are obviously still processing that news this morning, but I can say that I have had a number of conversations to ensure that the wider energy infrastructure as it relates to Mossmorran and to Grangemouth itself, and the pipelines that connect them, will not pose any risk to our energy system. As for the wider question of Acorn, I have taken that forward recently, having gained the carbon capture part of the brief, and I meet the company regularly. We have put money into that project because we want to see it succeed.

ExxonMobil: Mossmorran

Graham Leadbitter Excerpts

Tuesday 18th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Chris McDonald]

I point the hon. Member in the direction of our clean energy jobs plan, where we set out how that transition can be effected. There is also the £5.8 billion that we have committed to the National Wealth Fund to support investment in new projects. The transition of workforce and communities is very important to me and to this Government. Not all companies are the same; many different companies operate in different ways. This Government are absolutely committed to working with the private sector to achieve this transition, but in a way that is a partnership between Government, industry and trade unions. We are committed to that.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

We are talking about 400 direct jobs at Mossmorran, more in the supply chain, hundreds more at Grangemouth and a thousand a month out of Aberdeen. Those are independently assessed figures and figures that we know from the statement today. As somebody whose father worked at Ravenscraig in the 1980s, I know very well the impact such things have on families. The Minister has talked a lot about commercial decision making, but it does not happen in a vacuum; it is done on the basis of the policy environment and legislative environment in which companies are operating. He is not addressing that key issue, which is making a just transition unviable as it stands. Will he address those points?

[Chris McDonald]

I am pleased to meet another Member from a steelworker family. In fact, Ravenscraig is a plant that I never had the opportunity to work on, but I worked with many people who did, and they always spoke of the great sense of camaraderie among the workforce there. I absolutely refute the suggestion that this Government are not attracting investment. In fact, for Scotland alone, we have seen £800 million of investment in battery storage projects by Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners and £55 million has been awarded to the port of Cromarty Firth for small floating offshore wind. These are the industries of the future and the industries in which people in Scotland will be able to work in—in fact, they already are. The real responsibility of Government is to ensure that we help people to transition across into these industries. Fundamentally, that is the difference between this Government and every previous Conservative Government—and certainly the one in office over the past 14 years.

UK Modern Industrial Strategy

Graham Leadbitter Excerpts

Monday 23rd June 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Reynolds]

It was a pleasure to see my hon. Friend this morning with my right hon. Friends the Prime Minister and the Chancellor. I was absolutely blown away by that facility, not just by the obvious “big name” investment from the companies there, but by the young people in particular. Of course, we are trying to deliver a strategy for business, and that requires businesses to have access to the pipeline of people, talent and skills that they need. Within that story, there are so many opportunities and careers for young people. I find that absolutely inspiring. Having an offer for the kind of apprentices and advanced manufacturing we saw today, alongside pride in our service and creative sectors and what we are doing on defence, is all key to ensuring that there are not just the things we need as an economy, but equities and opportunities for young people, as there should be in every part of the UK, to get the lives that they deserve.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

While the UK Government announced a strategy that, as usual, barely gives Scotland any news, the Scottish Government under the SNP have just secured Scotland’s position as the highest ranking destination for foreign investment outside of London and the south-east for the 10th year in a row. While the UK Government refuse to see Scotland’s potential, the rest of the world are lining up to invest in us—think of what we will achieve when we are independent. Does the Minister accept that the only obstacle to Scotland’s success is the continuing devastation of a Brexit that we did not vote for and a UK Government that stubbornly refuse to see Scotland’s potential?

[Jonathan Reynolds]

Well, you can’t please everyone, can you? I am depressed just from listening to that question.

On the substance of the hon. Member’s question, he is categorically wrong. Look at what we are proposing for clean energy and what that means for Scotland. Look at the new supercomputer in Edinburgh and what that means for tech and digital. Look at the creative industries and the brilliant opportunities there. Look at the ambition on net zero and all the opportunities for investment in Scotland while cutting industrial energy bills.

Of course, there are parts of the strategy that respect the devolution settlement, as we would expect. Skills is something we can only address in England. The money has gone to the Scottish Government for whatever they want to do to take that forward. That is just the nature of a national industrial strategy that respects the devolved settlement. Independence would be ruinous for the economy. It would shed Scotland’s renewable energy potential from the customer base in England. I believe that at the time of the independence referendum, the SNP wanted a UK energy market anyway. If the hon. Member was being honest and candid, he would recognise that there are things that come from the massive strengths of the Union, come what may. This is a strategy that speaks to building on those opportunities for every bit of the United Kingdom, especially Scotland. Scotland’s economy could be described by the eight high-potential industrial strategy sectors in this document, so let’s have a bit of optimism and hope for Scotland.

Post Office Horizon: Redress

Graham Leadbitter Excerpts

Monday 9th September 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I very much recognise the conversation that my hon. Friend has had with her constituent, and her need and desire to progress that claim. The issue is about ensuring that the records are accurate. Cross-referencing between Ministry of Justice databases and court documents is proceeding apace. If her constituent has not yet had a letter and needs to register their credentials, they can do so, but I assure my hon. Friend that this is of maximum priority.

[Graham Leadbitter (Moray West, Nairn and Strathspey) (SNP)]

I thank the Secretary of State for the statement. It is welcome that the appeals process has been set out. I pay tribute to my SNP colleague and former MP, Marion Fellows, who, as many Members will know, put considerable effort into the issue. She has provided me with wise counsel on it. How satisfied is the Secretary of State with take-up so far—there is obviously some helpful detail in the statement—and what awareness campaigns are planned? There may still be people out there who are not aware that they can claim compensation. It is important that as many methods as possible are used to get to them.

There have recently been complaints, even from legal experts, that the application form for redress is overly complex, and that even experts would struggle to fill it in. Can the Secretary of State look to simplify it, obviously without our getting away from the key points, and bearing in mind the data that need to be collected?

Finally, I associate myself with the comments made about the wider impact. It is only a week since the Grenfell report’s publication, and mention was made during the previous statement about the covid contracts. These issues go right to the heart of trust in the Government, which is a really important point to address.

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I echo the hon. Gentleman’s comments about Marion Fellows and her contribution to the scheme. He asks how satisfied I am. I will not be satisfied until everyone has had redress; it is as straightforward as that. There was a group of about 2,417 claimants under the Horizon shortfall scheme, but following the television drama, a whole range of people who were not aware that they were eligible came forward, which was incredibly positive. I think that over 1,500 people came forward. Indeed, Members may still be finding people who are coming forward because of the awareness that raised. We should be thankful for the power of the arts to get a message out to people. Given the situation, none of us can be satisfied until we can be sure that we have got redress to everyone. That is what this Parliament collectively has to commit to.