The government has taken control of British Steel, so averting the closure within days of the UK’s last two blast furnaces. However, the takeover leaves a big question: what next?
Steep losses at British Steel prompted its Chinese owner, Jingye, to decide last month to close its blast furnaces in Scunthorpe, Lincolnshire, which would end the production of “virgin” steel in the UK. The government stepped in with emergency legislation, passed in a single day last Saturday, to prevent that.
