Industry minister Sarah Jones refused to rule out another Chinese firm “co-partnering” with the state on management of British Steel:
“Well, we are not at the moment. I am not going to say yes or no to anything that isn’t at the moment on the table or being looked at. Whatever the future for Scunthorpe, we want to make sure we can keep primary steel-making, we can keep steel making in our country and we can grow that industry, not see the continued decline that we have had over recent years.”
Labour is trying very hard not to use the ‘S‘ word and is instead talking up its big China thaw. Jones added:
“It’s very important but we have a trading relationship with China and that will continue to be the case it’s why the Chancellor was there and it’s why my colleague Douglas Alexander has been there last week.”
Alexander travelled there secretly. Golden Keir-A going pretty much as expected…
Tom Baldwin, author of Starmer’s hagiography, spoke to Times Radio:
Tom Baldwin: “I think he’d like to do something. He’s very dutiful and driven by service. That’s why he came into politics. I think that’s characterised his time as prime minister. He hasn’t always sought popularity or been good at being popular. But I think he has some of the necessary qualities that we actually do want in a prime minister. That resilience, that relentlessness, that ability to carry the weight and the job really does weigh very heavily on people and he carries that weight very, very well.”
Jo Coburn: “NATO Secretary-General?”
Tom Baldwin: “I think that’s something that he would be interested in. I think it probably requires Andy Burnham’s government to support him in that and these are some of the questions which Andy Burnham has to resolve quite quickly.”