Andrew Percy, MP for Brigg and Goole, asked a written parliamentary question on July 15th about the Steel Industry. Bear in mind that parts of Scunthorpe and the steel works are in his constituency. It would be very odd if at least some of Mr Percy's 86,000 constituents didn't work at the plant where the majority of British Steel's 5,000 workers are employed. The plant is going through a process of compulsory liquidation at the moment as we know.
A few days ago the chair of the Local Enterprise Partnership, Lord Haskins, said unequivocally that Brexit was to blame. He is quoted (HERE):
"The main problem with British Steel, and why were are in the mess we are in, is because of Brexit. For example, 23 per cent all their sales are into Europe. And who is going to write a five year contract with them? And if Boris has his way, the tariff on steel into Europe goes up to 23 per cent then that is a show stopper".
Now a few more things to bear in mind to set the scene:
- Percy is a Conservative MP
- Percy is a keen Brexiteer
- Percy urged his constituents to vote for Brexit
- Percy said the EU was responsible for the loss of highly skilled jobs
- Percy told his constituents not to listen to the scaremongering
- Boris Johnson is about to become prime minister threatening a no-deal Brexit
I imagine some of his constituents might have been indelicate enough to raise the Brexit related problems of British Steel with him and so he probably felt obliged to ask about it in The House. Here's his question:
Andrew Percy Conservative, Brigg and Goole
To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what steps his Department is taking to support UK steel exports.
Graham Stuart Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for International Trade)
Officials within the Department for International Trade including UK Export Finance
have met UK Steel and their members through the establishment of a
steel export taskforce that was set up to discuss and explore how we can
support UK based steel companies through international trade and the
services we offer. Analysis suggests MENA, India and ASEAN are markets where demand for steel is growing strongly.
He wants to know what steps are being taken to 'support UK steel exports' This is after urging his constituents to shrink their home market by 85% and put at risk what is probably the single largest wealth producer in the area.
Note the two Tories involved, Stuart and Percy, were too polite to mention Brexit although it's clearly at the heart of the problem. The MP for Goole who describes himself as 'not the brightest person on the planet' was clearly bright enough to keep silent about his role in potentially levelling Scunthorpe and to ask innocently what someone else is doing to help the families he has dropped in it. Cutting the plant off from its biggest export market cannot ever be a good idea and suggesting Scunthorpe might be able to export steel to India or Asia is, to put it mildly, a joke in very poor taste.
Note the two Tories involved, Stuart and Percy, were too polite to mention Brexit although it's clearly at the heart of the problem. The MP for Goole who describes himself as 'not the brightest person on the planet' was clearly bright enough to keep silent about his role in potentially levelling Scunthorpe and to ask innocently what someone else is doing to help the families he has dropped in it. Cutting the plant off from its biggest export market cannot ever be a good idea and suggesting Scunthorpe might be able to export steel to India or Asia is, to put it mildly, a joke in very poor taste.
He really should know better, a parliamentary research briefing from January 2018 puts British Steel problems in perspective. It says:
"In 2016, the UK produced 8 million tonnes of steel. China produced 808 million tonnes in the same year. The EU as a whole produced 166 million tonnes of steel in 2015. The
UK was the fifth largest steel producer in the EU, after Germany, Italy,
France and Spain".
Prospects for the UK steel industry
- The recent fall in international demand for steel, combined with continuing growth in production has created a glut of steel on the international market. This has pushed steel prices down, magnifying the comparative expense of steel produced in the UK, where overheads are higher than in some other countries.
- Some analysts have questioned the economic viability of the UK steel industry, but the Prime Minister has stated that the Government is committed to supporting this industry, which she describes as “vital”.
But one is inclined to say never mind, at least they'll be sovereign in Scunthorpe, jobless but sovereign and with blue passports which they will be able to use for exotic holidays - if they manage to find skilled, highly paid jobs to replace those lost at British Steel. It's possible that this could even be in Goole's asteroid mining industry (this is not a joke).
Anyway, the silver tongued Boris Johnson will surely have no difficulty in convincing redundant steel workers that picking seasonal strawberries on minimum wage is actually a noble calling and good for the environment - if not for their bank balance.
I look forward to reading Percy's next column in the Scunthorpe Telegraph where he tells steel workers it's a 'cruel deception' to think any government can do anything about it.
In an interview with Robert Peston Johnson tells people, including those in Scunthorpe presumably, to be 'more positive about Brexit'. If the company collapses without finding a buyer, the workers face a bleak future but no doubt standing in line at the job centre or opening worrying letters about missing mortgage payments, they will be able to feel 'positive' about Brexit if nothing else.
And amazingly, in comments that will have the scientific and financial communities up in arms, he wants to 'start diverging if necessary from the EU rules on bioscience or financial services'. The City of London has been trying for the last two years to persuade Brussels that our rules will have 'equivalence' to the EU's so they will be able to continue trading. The next PM just cut them off at the knees!
Diverging in bioscience is code for GM crops or what the Daily Mail used to call Frankenstein food. Let's see how that goes down in the Brexit heartlands.
Everybody who has the slightest interest in Brexit should watch tonight's Panorama at 9:00pm. The BBC have been interviewing the key players and have a summary of the programme (HERE) including Lord Bridges, a DEXEU minister revealing the fact that we never had a plan. This must be the worst kept secret ever. The OBR is expected, later today, to forecast a recession in the event that BoJo takes us out with no deal. It will be the first time in our long history that a government has adopted a deliberate recession inducing policy.
In the last hustings of the campaign, Johnson has claimed he will lead the Tories in a comeback. He will only lead them to oblivion.
In an interview with Robert Peston Johnson tells people, including those in Scunthorpe presumably, to be 'more positive about Brexit'. If the company collapses without finding a buyer, the workers face a bleak future but no doubt standing in line at the job centre or opening worrying letters about missing mortgage payments, they will be able to feel 'positive' about Brexit if nothing else.
And amazingly, in comments that will have the scientific and financial communities up in arms, he wants to 'start diverging if necessary from the EU rules on bioscience or financial services'. The City of London has been trying for the last two years to persuade Brussels that our rules will have 'equivalence' to the EU's so they will be able to continue trading. The next PM just cut them off at the knees!
Diverging in bioscience is code for GM crops or what the Daily Mail used to call Frankenstein food. Let's see how that goes down in the Brexit heartlands.
Everybody who has the slightest interest in Brexit should watch tonight's Panorama at 9:00pm. The BBC have been interviewing the key players and have a summary of the programme (HERE) including Lord Bridges, a DEXEU minister revealing the fact that we never had a plan. This must be the worst kept secret ever. The OBR is expected, later today, to forecast a recession in the event that BoJo takes us out with no deal. It will be the first time in our long history that a government has adopted a deliberate recession inducing policy.
In the last hustings of the campaign, Johnson has claimed he will lead the Tories in a comeback. He will only lead them to oblivion.
