British Steel nationalisation welcomed - with plea for blast furnaces

Simon Boyd OBE, managing director of REIDsteel, said: “This long overdue decision is very welcome.

“Public ownership is the only way for British Steel to secure its long term future.

“This will require substantial public investment that will pay back major dividends for our country in the medium term.

“It would be a great mistake for any government to consider private investment as an option until the necessary public investment has been made to put British Steel at the forefront of steelmaking in the world.

“We must also retain the ability to make virgin steel which means investment not only in an Electric Arc Furnace (EAF) as it is logical to use recycled scrap but investment in a new blast furnace with supporting infrastructure and carbon capture technology which will put us ahead of the competition.

“There is a forward looking business opportunity here to steal a march by making the UK the leading producer of high grade steel worldwide.

“We would not only be able to extend the lines that we can produce in the UK, we would also be able to produce more virgin steel for export.

“If the government truly wishes to once more make the UK a powerhouse of international steelmaking, with all of the benefits for the supply chain, economy and society that brings, it must hold its nerve and give British Steel and its workforce the investment, support and time it needs to succeed.

“I would be very pleased, along with others from the structural steel sector, to meet with officials from the Department for Business and Trade and Ministers to discuss this further.”

• PM Keir Starmer announced on 11 May that legislation will be brought forward this week – expected to be in the King’s speech on Wednesday 13 May - to give the government powers, subject to that public interest test, to take full national ownership of British Steel. It comes just over a year after the government took over the daily running of the business from its Chinese owner Jingye.

• Simon Boyd was made OBE in the New Year Honours for services to British steel manufacturing and Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs). He has previously campaigned to save the blast furnaces at British Steel. REIDsteel is a 130-strong structural steel business based in Christchurch, Dorset. It designs, makes and builds steel structures across the UK and worldwide, including bridges, aircraft hangars, offices, warehouses, hospital, airport terminals and disaster resistant buildings.