Lord Hunt of Wirral (Con)

My Lords, I begin by echoing the words of the Government Chief Whip: I thank all the staff of Parliament for their tremendous efforts in facilitating this recall today. It is no small task to bring us all together at short notice, and their dedication to the democratic process is deserving of recognition. At its heart, this debate is about whether we have a steel sector in this country at all, and whether it is run in the national interest. Earlier today, the Government confirmed that they will take control of British Steel, following the collapse of negotiations with its Chinese owners. This is a pivotal moment, not just for the future of British steel-making but for the future of Britain’s industrial base itself. Before I go any further, perhaps I may say that our thoughts today must be with the steel-workers, their families, their suppliers and the communities whose futures now hang in the balance. They deserve better than uncertainty and neglect, and they must certainly have a Government who are on their side. This the first time that Parliament has been recalled to sit on a Saturday since I was sitting in the other place in 1982, after the Falklands war began. It is only the sixth occasion since the end of the Second World War—and for a Bill published just two hours ago. There has been no respect for Parliament whatever. I really must say that this is not the way in which to treat this precious institution. The Bill itself grants far-reaching powers to the Secretary of State. The Government will argue that this is necessary because of the emergency we face. However, just now, in the other place, the Secretary of State said: “I do not want these powers a minute more than necessary”. So where is the sunset clause in this Bill? How can we be assured that these extraordinary powers will not be abused or extended indefinitely? The Government have to make clear the precise timeframe for these powers and, more importantly, they must demonstrate how they intend to ensure that public and Parliament are not left in the dark once this emergency has passed. The choice before Ministers should never have become this stark. Faced with the collapse of British Steel, the Government had little option but to intervene. Let us be clear: nationalisation is not a triumph but a last resort made necessary by failure. Without it, Britain would indeed have become the only G7 country without primary steel-making capacity. However, today’s events are not simply the result of forces beyond the Government’s control. The truth is that nationalisation must be a platform for urgent and permanent modernisation, not a short-term bailout or a delaying tactic. Without decisive action, Britain’s steel industry will wither under the combined pressures of global competition, green regulation and technological change. It is essential that we consider the effect and impact of green targets, which have placed immense strain on our industries. The policies driving us towards net zero by 2050 have hit our industries hard, especially energy-intensive sectors such as steel. Energy costs in the UK are now the highest in Europe, and four times those in the United States, and the current trajectory of green regulation is making it harder, not easier, for our industries to compete internationally. We just need to ensure that our environmental goals do not come at the cost of our industrial base. The Government must urgently review their net-zero policies to ensure that they support, and do not strangle, British industry. If we do not strike the right balance, we will continue to see industries such as steel driven offshore, taking with them not only jobs and investment but the very emissions targets we champion. We cannot allow this to happen. Let us remember that, just a few months ago, Ed Miliband banned coal and coke production in the UK and boasted about sending a signal to the world. Yet today, as we heard in the other place, the Government are going around the world with a begging bowl, trying to find enough coal to keep the last blast furnaces running. Could British Steel survive today if access to coal was not artificially restricted? Possibly, but we are in this mess because decisions such as this have been made in pursuit of political point-scoring by this Government, with no thought for the long-term health of our core industries. How is it possible that no one in the Government saw this crisis coming? How could they have been so unprepared? The warning signs have been flashing for months: ageing infrastructure, soaring energy prices and growing global competition. We debated in this Chamber just a short time ago the fact that there had been no serious contingency planning, as yet no coherent industrial strategy and certainly no sense of urgency. Instead, the Government are now scrambling to nationalise British Steel as a last resort. That is not leadership; it is crisis management at its worst. On 31 March, the Minister stated that “we will be producing a steel strategy very soon”.—[Official Report, 31/3/25; col. 18.] Following the events of the last 24 hours, and now that the Government have found time to lay an emergency Bill, it is surely time for them to publish an emergency steel strategy too. Where is it? The Secretary of State in the other place just referred to quotations from the steel strategy, so it must exist in draft. Should this House not be given a copy? Steel-workers and their families, and the taxpayer, need more than vague assurances—they need clear timelines—so when will this strategy be published? Will it commit to the urgent modernisation that our steel sector desperately needs? Will it address the crippling energy costs faced by our steel-makers? Will it set a clear and credible path to return British Steel to private ownership? We have to learn from industry. The last time steel was nationalised, back in the 1960s, the results were disastrous. I will cite figures from Hansard. Grants and loans to the British Steel Corporation between 1967 and 31 March 1980 totalled £4,925 million, and the net total loss for BSC since 1967 has been £1,552 million. Rather than revitalising the industry, nationalisation led to bureaucratic inefficiencies, losses, a decline in productivity and widespread industrial action. The Government’s approach to the steel sector is compounded by the broader challenges they face and are imposing on employers right across the country. The Government increased employers’ national insurance contributions and they are rushing through the unemployment Bill, which, in its current form, will add further strain to the already fragile labour market. It is difficult to see how these measures align with any credible strategy to attract private investment. Surely the Minister must acknowledge that the Government’s policies have made it more difficult to deliver the investment that the steel industry so desperately needs. If they are serious about a future where British Steel is returned to private hands, they must urgently reconsider their policies. We agree that uncertainty has to end, so will the Government confirm today that, should nationalisation be pursued, it will be only a temporary measure? Will they clearly set out the timeline for that transition to private ownership? We cannot afford to hear again the standard vagueness of “all options are on the table”. This does not provide the certainty that workers, who deserve clarity about their future, need. It does not provide certainty for the taxpayer, who is now footing the bill. Which brings me to my final point: can the Minister tell us what estimate the Government have reached of the cost of nationalisation to the taxpayer? This is not leadership; this is not planning; this is a crisis, and one that should never have been allowed to happen in the first place.