Steel Industry (Special Measures) Bill

Debate between Jonathan Reynolds and Sarah Owen

2nd reading
Saturday 12th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I am incredibly pleased to have the chance to answer the point my hon. Friend raises. The Port Talbot deal was originally negotiated by the previous Government. I did try to reopen it; I went to see Chandra in Davos and flew to Mumbai to talk to him about it. To be frank, I kept Port Talbot open on polling day, because it would have closed due to the industrial action that almost took place. The previous Government were nowhere to be seen, even before the result of the election was in. We were not able to reopen the deal, but we did negotiate a better deal. As a result, Port Talbot is in a stronger position than British Steel, because it has a long-term future in place. [Interruption.] This is because we improved on the deal that the Leader of the Opposition botched at the time. To be clear, the £2.5 billion green steel fund the Chancellor has put in place is in addition to the £500 million already going to Port Talbot. That is an incredibly important point.

[Sarah Owen (Luton North) (Lab)]

I thank the Secretary of State for giving way and for acting in the national interest—the complete opposite of the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), who said he was against intervening to save British Steel two years ago. Does the Secretary of State think the hon. Gentleman said that in the British interest or in the foreign interests the Reform party seeks to serve?

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I believe that that is on the record. I hope to convince all colleagues today to support this action, which is in the national interest.

Stellantis Luton

Debate between Jonathan Reynolds and Sarah Owen

Wednesday 27th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman for his sentiments, but the straightforward answer to that question is no. This is a skilled and talented workforce. These workers have not lost their jobs because of any deficiencies on their part; rather, they have been put in this position by a combination of factors, including the overcapacity in Europe. To be frank, from the minute we came into office, I think the company already intended this closure—it has nothing whatsoever to do with Government policy. I recognise the pressures arising from the existing policy we have inherited, hence the pragmatism on our part as a Government to make sure the policy is working for the transition, but I have no doubt that whether these workers choose to take advantage of the relocation offer or of demand elsewhere, they are brilliant, talented people who will be in demand.

[Sarah Owen (Luton North) (Lab)]

I refer Members to my entry in the Register of Members’ Financial Interests. Before I start, I want to put on record that the 1,100 people who will be losing their jobs in Luton today deserved much better than the response from the Conservative Front-Bench representative. It was very far from factual, and very far from serious.

I thank the Secretary of State for his statement and welcome any support for Vauxhall workers and their families, who are understandably devastated by Stellantis’s decision, especially this close to Christmas. It follows the closure of the SKF plant in Luton North earlier this year after a century of manufacturing. Like SKF, Vauxhall is, or was, synonymous with Luton. Stellantis’s callous decision will impact our whole town—our whole region, even—so what support will be offered, not just to the skilled and dedicated Vauxhall workers who are losing their jobs but to our town as a whole, to cope with the loss of this manufacturing giant that Luton helped build?

[Jonathan Reynolds]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for her question as well, and echo the sentiments I expressed to her constituency neighbour, my hon. Friend the Member for Luton South and South Bedfordshire (Rachel Hopkins). This whole decision is regrettable, but its timing is particularly regrettable. As I said in my statement, since the new Government came into power on 5 July, we have done everything we can to try to avoid this decision. I reiterated the offers I have made throughout the negotiating process, both in policy flexibility and potential new Government investment in the site, but regrettably it was not possible to change the decision.

I have made clear the support that is available, and I reiterate that promise. I do not want to minimise the impact of this decision in any way, but I believe my hon. Friend’s area is a place of considerable economic strength, with firms in the engineering, aerospace and air travel sectors and in the creative industries. There is a lot to be optimistic about for the future, but I recognise that that does not take away the bitterness of this particular blow for Luton at this time.