Asked by: Lord Houchen of High Leven (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure the use of domestic steel production and fabrication in taxpayer-funded infrastructure projects, and whether the financial support packages agreed for British Steel and Tata Steel UK include any procurement-related requirements, such as obligations on departments or publicly funded projects to consider the use of UK-produced steel.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We want to see more use of UK made steel in public projects, whilst respecting our national and international legal obligations.
To ensure that our steel producers, including British Steel and Tata Steel UK, are in the best position to bid for and win public contracts in that market, our steel Procurement Policy Note, introduced in June, states that all organisations in scope should consult UK Steel’s digital catalogue before making procurement decisions.
More broadly, we also welcome industry led local content targets across all industrial strategy sectors, including clean energy.
Asked by: Lord Houchen of High Leven (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the potential costs and practical implications for contractors delivering publicly funded projects of incorporating a requirement to use a proportion of UK-produced steel; and how that assessment informs their consideration of the role of procurement policy in supporting domestic steelmaking capacity.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
We want to see more use of UK made steel in public projects, whilst respecting our national and international legal obligations.
Central government procurers have an excellent record of using UK made steel. In FY 2023/24, where full domestic sourcing was possible, about 97% of the steel (by value) procured was UK made, equivalent to c.£351million. That said, we continue to strengthen mechanisms to enable the procurement of UK made steel. Our steel Procurement Policy Note, introduced in June, states that all organisations in scope should consult UK Steel’s digital catalogue before making procurement decisions.
More broadly, we also welcome industry led local content targets across all industrial strategy sectors, including clean energy.
Asked by: Lord Houchen of High Leven (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect on the competitiveness and long-term viability of UK steelmakers of publicly funded projects specifying grades of electric arc furnace steel that cannot be sourced from British producers at scale; and whether they have made an assessment of the risk that those specifications increase reliance on imported steel and excludes domestic steel from use in publicly funded projects.
Answered by Baroness Lloyd of Effra - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
This government is working towards a financially sustainable future for steelmaking in the UK, and we will set out our long-term vision for the sector in our upcoming Steel Strategy.
We are designing the Steel Strategy to drive growth in the industry, ensuring the sector is competitive and is in line with our national priorities, including increasing the level of domestic demand met by domestic production, to reduce reliance on imports.