Member

Octric, as the company is now called, has its own board and its own chief executive, recruited from industry, along with industry experts supporting it. It is of course supported by the Ministry of Defence, but it operates as a commercial concern—as a company in which the sole shareholder is the British Government. That is what we are talking about. Let us be clear: we are not talking about the Government acquiring a steel company then getting involved in the day-to-day running and making all sorts of detailed day-to-day demands. We are discussing the provision of powers to allow the strategic acquisition of a key element of the steel industry, if that is required and in the public interest.