Thamesteel

Nicholas Dakin Excerpts

Wednesday 21st March 2012 Westminster Hall

[Nic Dakin (Scunthorpe) (Lab)]

I am pleased to have been called to speak in the debate. We have already heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland (Tom Blenkinsop), who gave an excellent speech, and other hon. Members how important it is for the Government to act. Where the Government have acted in places such as Stocksbridge, Teesside and, indeed, my constituency of Scunthorpe, there have been better responses for local people. Indeed, the role of trade unions working together with management is significant in getting better outcomes for local communities.

I shall focus briefly on three things. First, I want to consider the need for demand now for steel and the need to introduce real infrastructure projects that create such demand. We know that there will be demand with High Speed 2, renewables and nuclear, but that is further away—towards the end of the decade. We need demand now. We do not need announcements about small things happening; we need real things to happen, with real action on infrastructure now. Today’s Budget gives the Government the opportunity to do that.

Secondly, as we have already heard in relation to energy supply and cost, the UK is far more expensive than its European neighbours. It is therefore difficult for us to be competitive in relation to decisions being taken in places such as Mumbai, because we look potentially uncompetitive compared with the other European options available to investors. On the package in the autumn statement, a consultation was announced in March that will report in March 2013. That continues the uncertainty. Even in March 2013, we will not know what that package of support looks like for energy-intensive industries. In the meantime, there is a policy vacuum and uncertainty, in which there is danger for UK steel. That needs addressing now.

The third element is the issue surrounding supply chain development and procurement, particularly in new industries such as renewables. We need action to ensure that we are in a position to deliver and procure steelmaking for our products that are being bought now. There has been the recent example of TAG Energy Solutions in the north-east, which is a case study of what should not happen. UK investment and UK steel are available, but the procurement process means that steel from elsewhere will be used to fund that development. That is not good enough. There is also the case of the Forth road bridge in Scotland, which will proudly be built with Chinese steel when UK steel in Scunthorpe and Dalzell is available. We need clear action on procurement and supply chain development.

We need action now on those three things to secure the UK steel industry. As the hon. Member for Redcar (Ian Swales) said, it is a crucial part of the security of this nation to secure UK steel. We need action on demand now, not tomorrow, and to bring infrastructure projects forward. We need action on energy security now, not in 2013. We need security for energy-intensive industries now and a package to sort that out now, not one that takes all the time in the world. We also need action on procurement and supply chain development now. If the Government take those actions, I am sure that Labour Members will fully support and embrace that, because it is in the interests of UK plc and of workers, such as the workers we see here today who are rightly concerned about their living. Thank you, Mr Davies, I have said my piece.