Labour says it is “strongly minded” to nationalise British Steel. In a statement made this morning by the industry ministeR:
“The Government committed to updating Parliament on British Steel every four sitting weeks for the duration of the period of special measures being applied under the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act 2025.
The Government’s priority remains to maintain the safe operation of the blast furnaces at British Steel. Government officials are continuing to provide on-site support in Scunthorpe, ensuring uninterrupted domestic steel production and monitoring the use of taxpayer funds.
On funding, the position remains that all Government funding for British Steel will be drawn from existing budgets, within the spending envelope set out at Spring Statement 2025. To date, we have provided approximately £555 million for working capital, covering items such as raw materials and salaries. This will be reflected in the Department for Business and Trade’s accounts for both 2025-26 and 2026-27.
The Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill has completed its passage in the House of Commons and has entered the House of Lords. Given the information currently available to us, the Government is strongly minded to use the powers in the Bill to bring British Steel into public ownership in the future, subject to the public interest being satisfied and taking into account all the relevant facts at that time.”
More than a year later…
Badenoch is at CityUK’s Annual Conference this morning promising a new regulatory regime for financial services. A new Mrs Thatcher revolution?
Her central argument is that eliminating risk also eliminates reward and growth. She points out compliance headcount has tripled since 2009 and compliance costs she says are six times higher than the nearest competitor. She blames risk-averse regulators who only ever add rules, and politicians who delegated responsibility to them…
The actual policies so far trailed are:
The Tories say there is more to come…
Zack Polanski has said he should have shown “greater care” when checking his council tax liability while living on his houseboat. Which co-conspirators can see here…
Tories and others in City Hall are pursuing Zack’s case – he is an assembly member. In a statement he blamed his “unusual” living arrangements on financial hardship:
““I wish to make absolutely clear that there was never any intention on my part to evade council tax, avoid legal obligations, or obtain any improper financial advantage… Having lived through periods of economic difficulty on a limited income, I understand first-hand the challenges faced by many Londoners. My previous living arrangements reflected those circumstances rather than any attempt to avoid financial obligations.”
He went on:
“Whilst I accept that greater care could have been taken in understanding the practical implications of my unconventional housing arrangements, I strongly refute suggestions that my honesty or integrity should be called into question.”
The GLA itself won’t pursue an investigation because the matter relates to Polanski’s “private circumstances.” In the meantime he’s waiting for two councils – Waltham Forest and Hackney – to tell him whether he owes council tax. Bit late…
According to the ONS, unemployment unexpectedly dipped to 4.9% in the three months to April. Slightly down from 5%…
The ‘good’ news for the Treasury ends there. New recruits joining payrolls have fallen to their lowest level in five years, vacancies continue to decline, and private sector wage growth has slowed to its weakest pace since the pandemic. Average regular earnings rose by 2.9% in the private sector, compared to 5.1% in the public sector. Thanks Rachel!
Chief economist at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales Suren Thiru said
“This fresh fall in job vacancies suggests that demand for workers is dwindling uncomfortably quickly amid the growing financial squeeze on firms and as greater automation reshapes the jobs market.”
The Bank of England is set once again to hold interest rates at 3.75% at midday. Stay tuned…
Anti-hunting ban campaigners descended on Westminster tonight. Hounds and all…
The protesters gathered on on Marsham Street for a protest organised by the Countryside Alliance outside the DEFRA offices, where Labour peer Baroness Mallalieu attacked the government for being out of touch. Protesters held banners bearing the slogans “hands off the countryside” and “fight the ban, save our countryside.” Any sane person would recognise that Labour is waging a war on the countryside…
The protest comes a day before the end of the government’s consultation on banning trail hunting. More than 75,000 people so far have responded to the government’s consultation opposing the ban…
Tim Bonner, Chief Executive of the Countryside Alliance, told Guido:
“This demonstration outside Defra highlights the massive opposition to the government’s proposal to ban trail hunting which has seen over 75,000 people respond to the consultation to tell the government to drop the idea. There could not be a clearer message. The countryside rejects this return to culture war politics and the anti-rural policies of this government from the Family Farm Tax, to hikes on business rates, to attacks on game shooting and gun ownership. The countryside, and the country as a whole, has a thousand greater priorities than Labour’s vendetta against hunts.”
Cry havoc and let slip the hounds of war…
Speaking at his speech on how to achieve “progressive capitalism” Wes Streeting fired a dig and Andy Burnham:
“Bond markets are not bond villains and fiscal rules matter.”