The British government has launched a new ‘Steel Council’ in a bid to revive the sector following thousands of job losses last year.
The aim of the council is to assist in the negotiation of plans for the industry, which will also receive up to £2.5 billion of investment funds.
UK business secretary Jonathan Reynolds, who received his current appointment following the 2024 General Election and will chair the council's first meeting in due course, said steel communities had ‘had enough of lurching from crisis to crisis’.
The council will include representatives from Tata Steel, British Steel and Sheffield Forgemasters, which is owned by the Ministry of Defence.
The Labour-led government has vowed to spend £2.5 billion ‘to rebuild the steel industry’, an investment sum that will supplement a separate £500 million package for Tata Steel to part-fund the new EAF-based steel production at Port Talbot.
The Steel Council, co-chaired by the chairman of Teesside-based Materials Processing Institute, is set to work towards the launch of the government's steel strategy in spring – which is expected to set out how steel capacity can be increased in the UK and how investment decisions can meet demand and boost economic growth.
The council will also discuss how to allocate the funding.
"The establishment of the Steel Council marks a defining moment for the future of steelmaking in Britain.''
Gareth Stace, director general, UK Steel
Gareth Stace, director general of trade group UK Steel, said: "The establishment of the Steel Council marks a defining moment for the future of steelmaking in Britain. The council represents a crucial step towards creating a comprehensive government steel strategy - one that lays the foundations for a sustainable and resilient industry."
Source: BBC