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Dear Resident,
In light of exciting news for our steelworks today, please find below my Special Steel Update with information on:
- A huge campaign success in retaining steel safeguards today
- My "Steel Counter": a compilation of all the times I have championed our steelworks in Parliament
- British Steel's £80 million investment in our local steelworks
- A Memorandum of Understanding between British Steel and Drax to use British steel in Drax's multi-million pound carbon capture project.
Steel Safeguards retained in huge campaign success today
I am writing today’s ‘Special Update’ to tell you about some fantastic news for our steelworks. After a tough fight, the Government has today confirmed that they are extending steel safeguards on foreign imports of steel for a further two years. With the European Union and other countries maintaining tariffs, our steelmakers were at risk of unfair competition if our safeguards had been dropped. It was absolutely essential that we did not allow them to expire at the end of this month, and I am chuffed to bits that the Government has once again stepped in to ensure products made here in Scunthorpe are protected from this unfair competition. You can read the Minister’s full statement here and you can watch my response to the Minister below:
Residents who have followed this closely will know that Andrew Percy and I fought tooth-and-nail for a 12-month extension on these safeguards in 2021 and I think it’s safe to say we both had some extra grey hair at the end of that!. Following the Trade Remedies Authority’s (TRA) recommendations to lift certain tariffs back then, the Prime Minister intervened to retain these safeguards and protect our steel industry. The Secretary of State then asked the TRA to reconsider their findings for 2022. We have continued to press government on this issue over the last year. Over the past few months, I have pored over the data with our local steel stakeholders, organised countless meetings, written letters to Government and had numerous run-ins with Ministers in corridors whenever I’d got the chance to see them. I wanted to push key points, like the importance of using British steel in British projects, and the strategic imperative to maintain a domestic steel industry as other countries do around the world.
Having raised our case with Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Secretary of State for International Trade Anne Marie Trevalyn, the Minister for Industry Lee Rowley, the Secretary of State for the Cabinet Office Jacob Rees-Mogg, Minister for Trade Policy Penny Mordaunt, Secretary of State Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Steel, British Steel, the TRA, the Conservative Steel Caucus and several other stakeholders, there is now a long list of people who will undoubtedly be pleased that I have got off their backs! The TRA concluded earlier this month that the evidence supported maintaining safeguards, and despite some considerable challenge - the Government has thankfully followed through with this recommendation and stood up for our jobs!
I cannot emphasise enough how important a victory this is for our steelworks. British steel producers will be shielded from the estimated £150 million in damages that could have been caused by a surge in cheap imports and a loss of market share, protecting jobs in our area. It also means potential space for investment, like the £80 million investment that British Steel put into our steelworks just last week (more on this below). Today’s announcement ensures that our steelworks has a future. Once again, the Government has shown that they are ready to take the right steps to “Level Up” and protect jobs in Scunthorpe.
My job now is to sustain this support and continue to work with our local steelworks, to ensure it gets the fair environment it needs to remain a global competitor. Our steel ambitions go in tandem with wider plans for Scunthorpe to become a commercial powerhouse, be it through the 65-acre Advanced Manufacturing Park being developed on the edge of our town, the new North Lincolnshire Green Energy Park set to pass on energy to key developments in the area, or the Enterprise and Innovation Hub being built in the town centre. This is not to forget the value of health infrastructure improvements we have already seen or the bid for a new Scunthorpe Hospital still being pushed by North Lincolnshire colleagues and I in Parliament. It is for this reason that I recently turned down a role in Government. Whilst I was honoured to be asked to serve as a Parliamentary Private Secretary, I know that my full focus needs to be on securing opportunities for Scunthorpe and our surrounding villages.
The success of our steelworks is central to this, and I am (again) delighted by today’s announcement!
My "Steel Counter"
Championing our local steel industry is a huge part of my job, given the importance of Government support for our steelwork's competitiveness. This is why residents will often see me bobbing up-and-down on the green benches in the House of Commons, trying to catch the eye of the Speaker so that I can reiterate the importance of a domestic steel industry. Indeed, since coming into office in 2019, it has been brought to my attention that I have mentioned steel 132 times in Parliament. Whether it be the campaign for Government to retain safeguards, procure British steel or mitigate high energy prices, I have always found a valid reason to raise steel issues whenever possible. Please do have a watch of the video below that my office has kindly put together, which is a highlight reel of every mention I have made of steel down in Westminster.
I would point out that my work in the Chamber is a small, but incredibly important, part of the efforts I undertake to support our local steel industry. It is safe to say that I have probably mentioned steel a lot more times off-camera! I am in constant discussions with residents, steel colleagues and local stakeholders as to how best to raise awareness of steel needs, and will keep fighting for our steelworks through every avenue available to me.
British Steel's £80 million investment in our local steelworks
Even before today's announcement, I was really chuffed to see British Steel announce that they would be investing £80 million in our local steelworks. The money will go into a new billet caster at an upgraded Rod Mill. I was actually able to see both of these steelmaking facilities in my visit last month, and look forward to seeing these improvements in future trips to the steelworks!
I gave my support for this cash injection on BBC Humberside just after the announcement, which you can watch below. This is a further vote of confidence in our local steelworks and its staff.
Memorandum of Understanding between British Steel and Drax to use British steel in Drax's multi-million pound carbon capture project.
On top of this, British Steel signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Drax last week to explore opportunities for its steel to be used to build the world’s largest multi-billion-pound carbon capture project at Drax's power station in the UK.
This agreement falls perfectly in line with my firm belief that British steel is the best steel to procure in the world, and it demonstrates how British steel can contribute to lower carbon emissions. Far from slowing down Net Zero ambitions, our steelworks stand ready to help build the infrastructure for clean energy. I am really excited to see how last week's announcement will benefit Scunthorpe.
Please do keep an eye out on my Facebook for further updates on our local steel industry, and check your inbox soon for my next "Local Update".
Best regards,
Holly