Opposition Day — Steel Industry — 28 Oct 2015 at 16:01

The majority of MPs voted against taking immediate action to protect the steel industry via measures including working with the EU to control steel imports, reductions in business rates and lower taxes on electricity as well as regulatory changes.

The motion opposed by the majority of MPs in this vote was:

• That this House
• believes that the UK steel industry is of national strategic importance and should be supported by the UK Government;
• notes that the UK steel industry is in crisis and that the recent closure of SSI in Redcar has resulted in 2,000 direct job losses, with a further 1,000 contractor jobs lost and 6,000 jobs to be lost in the local supply chain, the announcement by Tata Steel that they will no longer produce steel plate at Dalzell, Clydebridge and Scunthorpe has resulted in 1,170 job losses, and that 1,700 jobs are at risk as Caparo Industries has gone into administration;
• recognises that for every direct steel job lost a further three indirect job losses will follow;
• further notes the vital importance of the steel industry to those local communities it serves, the proud industrial heritage of Britain’s steel towns and the very real threat to these parts of the country should the steel industry disappear; and
• calls upon the Government to take immediate action to protect the steel industry, including immediately implementing the Energy Intensive Industry Compensation Package, taking action with the EU Commission on antidumping measures, looking at temporary action on business rates, reviewing how regulatory frameworks impact the industry, and promoting local content and sustainability in procurement contacts, and for the Government to publish a full industrial strategy including what level of capacity the Government envisages is needed in the steel industry, so as to safeguard this vital strategic asset.

The motion rejected in this vote was:

• That the original words stand part of the Question.

The "original words" are those in the motion quoted above.

Debate in Parliament | Source |