Oral Answers to Questions

Richard Thomson Excerpts

Tuesday 16th November 2021 Commons Chamber

[Lee Rowley]

My hon. Friend gives a brilliant example of where the support that is being provided by the Treasury and the Chancellor can, over the long term, ensure investment in plant and machinery and improvement in productivity across the country.

[Richard Thomson (Gordon) (SNP)]

4. What steps his Department is taking to allocate funding from the Clean Steel Fund before 2023 following the development of hydrogen-based steelmaking projects in Sweden and Germany.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lee Rowley)]

The Government continue to work with the UK steel sector, through the UK Steel Council, regular meetings and constant dialogue, to understand its decarbonisation plans, whether through electric arc, industrial carbon capture equipment or other emerging technologies such as hydrogen.

[Richard Thomson]

In contrast to Germany’s €3 billion hydrogen plan, there was no new funding announced in the recent Budget for clean steel projects. As 2023 is far too late, with primary steel plants accounting for 15% of UK CO₂ emissions, will the Government now commit funding to clean steel projects similar to the ones we see in Germany and Sweden, or will steel communities be left standing by once again while European competitors get on with levelling up their industries?