“Conservative indifference” has seen UK steelmaking plummet, says Labour

Labour has criticised what it describes as “Conservative indifference” after figures showed that steel production in the country has plummeted by more than a fifth since the Tories came to power.

Analysing data from industries classified as the “manufacture of basic metals”, the party highlighted that the UK has seen a reduction 20 times bigger than the average fall among European countries.

Output has fallen by 21.5% since 2010, with the steel industry’s gross value added (GVA) falling by nearly £1bn in real terms between 2010 and 2019. Labour’s Lucy Powell described it as a “huge hit to our economy”.

“It’s absolutely crucial we protect our country’s steel industry, which provides highly-skilled jobs across the country and equips us to build critical infrastructure like railways, hospitals and schools,” the shadow business minister said.

“But a decade of Conservative indifference has seen steelmaking production plummet in a huge hit to our economy, risking jobs and livelihoods, whilst other countries across Europe have backed their steel industries to grow.

“Labour would stand up for our steelmakers with a proper industrial strategy, supporting the industry to decarbonise, and putting in place stronger targets to buy British steel. And we would step up, not stand back, and protect jobs and plants at Liberty Steel.”

The intervention from Labour came shortly after reports this week that Liberty Steel UK plans to restart steelmaking next week as it continued to seek new funding after its main financial backer, Greensill Capital, went into insolvency.

The government rejected appeals from its parent company, GFG Alliance, for a £170m emergency loan. Trade unions have urged the government to take the company, which employs 3,000 workers in Britain, into public ownership.

UK steel production fell by 30% in 2016, representing the biggest drop since the 1980s, and output is now at the lowest level since 1933. Some European countries, such as Denmark, Hungary and Sweden, have seen increased production.

Labour has argued that, with most of our country’s steelworkers living in Yorkshire, Wales, the West Midlands and the North East, the decline in the industry makes a mockery of the Conservatives’ pledge to protect jobs in these communities.

The party recently called on the government to “put UK steelmakers and workers first” with stronger “buy British guarantees” in the procurement process to ensure a preference for UK steel for major public infrastructure projects.

Commenting on analysis of official government figures by the party, showing that 24p in every pound spent on steel for government works went abroad in 2018/19, Powell accused ministers of “failing to back UK steelmaking”.

The opposition party highlighted that for the year 2018/19 UK steelmakers missed out on at least £25m worth of government funding for infrastructure projects with over 111,000 tonnes of steel imported for UK projects.