Closing summary
For the second time today, we’re closing this blog. Here’s a round-up of the day’s main developments:
Keir Starmer is stepping in to seize control of British Steel to stop its Chinese owner shutting the Scunthorpe plant in an unprecedented move that paves the way for likely nationalisation
The prime minister was granted a recall of parliament on Saturday, with MPs set to debate emergency laws that will give the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, the power to direct the company
The government is aiming to “pass emergency legislation in one day”, Starmer said, with the Lords also being recalled
Meanwhile, Michael Gove is among seven new appointees to the House of Lords by Rishi Sunak in his resignation honours list. James Cleverly, Jeremy Hunt, Mel Stride and Grant Shapps are among those receiving knighthoods
Rachel Reeves has said that the government needs to go “further and faster on delivering growth that is felt by families up and down the country” after February’s GDP figures showed an unexpected growth of 0.5%, and January’s figures were revised up slightly
Thanks for reading.
Analysis: British Steel facing crisis within crisis
Blast furnaces have been making steel in Britain for 300 years, ever since they helped start the Industrial Revolution. This weekend, parliament will sit for the first Saturday in decades as it tries to keep the last two furnaces running for a bit longer.
Keir Starmer has recalled MPs to discuss emergency powers to direct steel companies, including British Steel’s Scunthorpe steelworks, to “preserve capability and ensure public safety”. The move would be short of nationalisation, but it would give the government more influence on the steel industry than at any point since Margaret Thatcher.
The government is scrambling to save Scunthorpe after its Chinese owner, Jingye Steel Group, last month said it was considering closing it, with the likely loss of 2,700 jobs. Starmer and the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, hope to keep the plant running for the next few weeks while they work out the longer-term plan, with nationalisation one option.
British Steel is facing a crisis within a crisis: in the short term – the next week or so – it needs materials, including iron pellets and coking coal, or else it faces the prospect of the furnaces cooling beyond easy or affordable recovery. Customers would flee, making job losses inevitable.
People with knowledge of this week’s talks between the UK government and Jingye said it appeared that the government had run out of patience with the Chinese company’s negotiating. The government had offered to buy the raw materials to keep the blast furnaces running in the short term but that offer was not taken up. Parliament may be able to avert the short-term crisis on Saturday.
Updated
