Commenting on today’s announcement from the Government regarding British Steel, UK Steel’s director general, Gareth Stace said:
“This news is significant blow for the company, its employees, and the communities across the UK that it supports. British Steel does not sit in isolation but is a critical part of the UK’s wider steel sector, a strategic British industry underpinning a myriad of supply chains.
“Receivership does at least leave options on the table including providing a time to secure a new buyer. All focus now needs to be on securing the future of steel production at the site and avoiding the mistakes seen at Teeside in 2015. We have every confidence that the Government is investigating every available opportunity and pulling out all the stops to ensure a viable solution is found. We stand ready to work with the Government to help it deliver this."
He continued: “Despite the challenges the sector faces at the current time, the outlook for steel demand and consumption in the UK, and across the globe, remains positive. Economies around the world continue to require increasing volumes of steel and UK steel producers will continue to supply high quality products to meet this demand.
"Indeed the Government’s own study recently detailed an additional £4 billion a year opportunity for the sector in the UK alone and we know what must be done to seize this.
“Of course, many of our challenges are far from unique to steel – the whole manufacturing sector is crying out for certainty over Brexit. Unable to decipher the trading relationship the UK will have with its biggest market in just five months’ time, planning and decision making has become nightmarish in its complexity.
"I must again state in no uncertain terms the critical need for the UK to reach agreement with Europe as soon as possible, avoiding a no-deal Brexit at all costs. Those that claim otherwise are breathtakingly callous in their attitude towards manufacturing in this country.
“Beyond the cloud of Brexit, longstanding domestic issues such as uncompetitive electricity prices and business rates also continue to chisel away at investment and action on these issues, as part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy, must also be a top priority for the Government now.
“Above all, we must remember that the steel industry is an enduring and resilient one; we have been the bedrock of the UK’s industrial landscape for 150 years since we pioneered mass steel production techniques, remaining a constant whilst other industries have come and gone.
"In major economies from China, to Japan, to the US – strong innovative steel industries sit alongside global tech firms. There is absolutely no reason why the UK need be any different."
UK Steel https://www.makeuk.org/uksteel
