They Must be Coking

Ben Wildsmith

On Wednesday, I listened to the Prime Minister enthusing about the Universal theme park that is due to be built in Bedford.

It would, he explained, contain ‘a lot of steel’ and he was delighted to confirm that the steel would be British. Huzzah!

About half an hour later, Rhondda MP Chris Bryant, who is Minister for Theme Parks, was asked to confirm that Universal had agreed to use British steel for the project. He hoped so.

It turns out that nobody has yet asked Universal if they are happy to have their suppliers determined by Keir Starmer, but the Minister for Log Flumes would get on to it straight away.

‘Boost’

The lead item on the following news bulletin was that the Prime Minister had announced a ‘boost’ for the British steel industry.

Steel is the cause of the moment. Previously committed free-marketeer Richard Tice of Reform UK visited Scunthorpe to deliver a speech calling for government intervention in saving the UK’s last remaining blast furnace. Steel, he explained, is a strategically vital industry.

Leaving aside the incongruity of Tice in Scunthorpe, about as edifying as a Fabergé egg on a fry-up, the sudden enthusiasm of Westminster politicians for government intervention in industry is jarringly at odds with their track records.

Parliament was recalled today to nationalise the Scunthorpe plant, with Starmer promising legislation passed within 24 hours. This came after the government offered to pay for supplies to keep the furnaces burning, only to find that their Chinese owners weren’t interested.

Now, put down any breakable or sharp objects you might be holding and read Number 10’s statement ahead of the debate.

The prime minister has been clear, his government will always act in the national interest. All actions we take are in the name of British industry, British jobs and for British workers.

Tomorrow, parliament will be recalled to debate the Steel Industry (Special Measures) bill. The bill provides the government with the power to direct steel companies in England, which we will use to protect the Scunthorpe site. It enables the UK government to preserve capability and ensure public safety. It also ensures all options remain viable for the future of the plant and the livelihoods it supports.

We have been negotiating with British Steel’s owners in good faith ever since coming to office. We have always been clear there is a bright future for steel in the UK. All options remain on the table.

‘England’

You will notice the supple way that ‘England’ is specified within a statement that otherwise seeks to glorify the Prime Minister’s attitude to ‘British’ industry.

The reason for this, of course, is that Labour’s sudden willingness to act in a way ideologically recognisable as Labour does not, and did not extend to Tata’s plant in Port Talbot.

According to Number 10’s own self-serving statement, the government has been negotiating for Scunthorpe since coming to office. It is reasonable, therefore, for Welsh voters to infer that Port Talbot was sacrificed willingly and by political choice.

Aside from theme parks, the government’s other strategy for saving the British economy is arms manufacture. This, presumably, is why steel has, overnight, become strategically vital to political chancers of all stripes.

In a further grotesque juxtaposition of fortunes, it was announced this week that Port Talbot will receive special funding for mental health services to meet expected demand from people who have lost their livelihoods.

CBT

Even as it trumpets its new strategy in Scunthorpe, the Labour government is throwing online CBT courses at people whose lives it has allowed to be ruined in Port Talbot.

‘Welsh’ Labour has recently begun to put distance between itself and the national party. Jeremy Miles has objected to the government’s benefits policy, and that is to his credit. It’s too late though, surely.

The ideological pick‘n’mix that characterises Starmer’s government is so arbitrary as to be incoherent.

Resultingly, outcomes for people in the UK are unpredictable and divorced from the efforts they are putting into life.

Here in Wales, it seems that the nation’s loyalty to Labour has resulted not just in complacency, but contempt. Next year’s elections will mark a new era, one way or another.