Latest news with #SheffieldForgemasters
Yahoo
16 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
In Labour's hands, British manufacturing never stood a chance
The delay of the UK's long-awaited industrial strategy should hardly come as a shock. This country's approach to such matters has long been confused. At times, it has been utterly non-existent. Industrial policy was so muddled during the twilight years of a dying Tory government, that it often seemed like ministers were making it up as they went along. Knee-jerk responses to major crises – such as the one that saw Sheffield Forgemasters nationalised when someone in Whitehall suddenly realised the £40bn programme to build the Royal Navy's next-generation nuclear missile submarines was in jeopardy –became the norm in the absence of any joined-up thinking. The decision of Boris Johnson to scrap the industrial strategy council and replace it with the 'Build Back Better council' – one of many utterly hollow slogans the Tories desperately dreamed up as their popularity collapsed – seemed like the moment that the UK threw in the towel on any pretence of a clear industrial plan. Remarkably, the situation has deteriorated even further under this Labour Government. Rather than 'reigniting Britain's industrial heartlands' as Keir Starmer claimed on the basis of very little, shortly after taking power, the current Cabinet is in danger of presiding over the complete disappearance of UK manufacturing. In the hands of clueless Labour ministers obsessed by net zero and entirely arbitrary green targets, swathes of the industrial base are vanishing before our eyes, and there is no plan to stop it. The consequences for entire towns built on factory production, and surrounding communities, will be utterly devastating. Since Labour won the general election, the list of major manufacturers that have raised the white flag has ballooned into a who's who of UK industry. Port Talbot's blast furnaces have closed, threatening the very existence of that region's biggest employer. At British Steel, the situation is even more alarming – its vast Lincolnshire steelworks is now controlled by the Government, forced to step in after years of neglect by Chinese owners, yet with no discernible sign that the site has a viable future. The closure of Grangemouth, Scotland's only remaining oil refinery, in the coming weeks, is in danger of being missed altogether – except of course by the hundreds of people employed there. True, owner Ineos has a reputation for ruthless cost-cutting across its empire, but billionaire owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe has warned repeatedly of the existential crisis facing the chemicals industry as a result of what he describes as 'decarbonising by de-industrialisation'. Others that failed to grab the same headlines, but whose loss to the nation's output will be no less severe, include the Olefins 'cracker' facility in Teesside. A feature of the local skyline for half a century, it reportedly stands on the brink of closure after its Saudi Arabian owners halted a multimillion-pound upgrade. The future of the North Sea, cement, glass, paper, ceramics and other so-called foundational industries are all similarly bleak – the result of long-term neglect, complacency, short-term politics, and confused decision-making. The idea that salvation lies in Britain's unquestioning embrace of all things net zero is the great lie of this century. Ed Miliband's 'green jobs' promise is a fantasy. Where employment is being created by clean energy projects, many thousands more are being destroyed on the altar of his fanaticism as companies buckle under the exorbitant costs of the transition. But it's not just the renewables revolution that is at fault, the UK's energy policy has long been a complete catastrophe. Time and again, sky-high energy costs are being blamed for crushing the life out of heavy industry as production lines are shut down or entire factory complexes mothballed altogether. The shadow of the green levy monster looms large but factory bosses also blame surging gas prices for the destruction. Throw excessive network charges into the mix and British companies are grappling with the most punishing energy bills in the world, leading to an extraordinary collapse in output. The figures, published in The Telegraph last weekend, are truly astonishing. In the UK, industrial electricity costs have shot up by three quarters in three years and industrial gas prices have more than doubled. Meanwhile, the output of energy-intensive industries has tumbled by a third. It is the equivalent of having not one, but both hands fastened behind the back and your shoelaces tied together. Faced with energy bills five times greater than their US counterparts and three times higher than European rivals, British industry stands little chance of competing globally. It is therefore impossible to overstate how much there is riding on the industrial strategy this time around. Recent history from both sides of the political divide suggests there is little reason to be hopeful given the number of unconvincing iterations of industrial policy that have come before. Yet the overwhelming message from UK manufacturers is that energy costs are a tangible problem that can be addressed. The blizzard of Government-imposed green levies and taxes that companies must contend with, such as the climate change levy, renewables obligation, feed-in tariffs, alone leaves plenty of room for meaningful action. The bold move would be to bring forward a planned tax on carbon intensive goods imports of cement, fertiliser, aluminium, iron and steel set for 2027, at the same time as expanding it to other key sectors such as glass and ceramics. Fears that the tariff will push up prices for consumers cannot be overlooked but, at the same time, a policy of penalising domestic producers while goods pour in from countries that continue to pollute at will seems like self-harm on a grand scale. There are encouraging signs that this Government is actually listening for once. Rachel Reeves told an audience at the annual CBI dinner last week: 'We know that one of the questions is how we make energy more affordable, especially for … intensive energy-using businesses where the price compared with other countries … is just too acute.' But the time for talking is clearly over. The crisis in manufacturing means Britain's industrialists will no longer stand for ministers trying to fob them off with easy soundbites. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
18 hours ago
- Business
- Telegraph
In Labour's hands, British manufacturing never stood a chance
The delay of the UK's long-awaited industrial strategy should hardly come as a shock. This country's approach to such matters has long been confused. At times, it has been utterly non-existent. Industrial policy was so muddled during the twilight years of a dying Tory government, that it often seemed like ministers were making it up as they went along. Knee-jerk responses to major crises – such as the one that saw Sheffield Forgemasters nationalised when someone in Whitehall suddenly realised the £40bn programme to build the Royal Navy's next-generation nuclear missile submarines was in jeopardy –became the norm in the absence of any joined-up thinking. The decision of Boris Johnson to scrap the industrial strategy council and replace it with the 'Build Back Better council' – one of many utterly hollow slogans the Tories desperately dreamed up as their popularity collapsed – seemed like the moment that the UK threw in the towel on any pretence of a clear industrial plan. Remarkably, the situation has deteriorated even further under this Labour Government. Rather than 'reigniting Britain's industrial heartlands' as Keir Starmer claimed on the basis of very little, shortly after taking power, the current Cabinet is in danger of presiding over the complete disappearance of UK manufacturing. In the hands of clueless Labour ministers obsessed by net zero and entirely arbitrary green targets, swathes of the industrial base are vanishing before our eyes, and there is no plan to stop it. The consequences for entire towns built on factory production, and surrounding communities, will be utterly devastating. Since Labour won the general election, the list of major manufacturers that have raised the white flag has ballooned into a who's who of UK industry. Port Talbot's blast furnaces have closed, threatening the very existence of that region's biggest employer. At British Steel, the situation is even more alarming – its vast Lincolnshire steelworks is now controlled by the Government, forced to step in after years of neglect by Chinese owners, yet with no discernible sign that the site has a viable future. The closure of Grangemouth, Scotland's only remaining oil refinery, in the coming weeks, is in danger of being missed altogether – except of course by the hundreds of people employed there.
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Nato chief warns of Russian threat and calls for ‘quantum leap' in collective defence
Russia will remain an imminent threat to Nato even if there is peace in Ukraine and the western alliance has to dramatically increase its air defences and tank and weapon numbers as a result, the head of the organisation will say on Monday. Mark Rutte, who is visiting the UK and meeting the prime minister, Keir Starmer, is expected to outline why it is necessary for allies to agree a dramatic increase in military spending to 5% of GDP at a summit in The Hague later this month. At a speech at the Chatham House thinktank in London on Monday afternoon, the Nato secretary general will argue the alliance needs 'a quantum leap in our collective defence' and 'more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full'. Critically, Rutte is expected to say 'the fact is, danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends', reflecting a belief that the Kremlin will not demilitarise even it agrees to a ceasefire and eventually a peace with Kyiv. Military planners believe that Russia will seek to retain an active and experienced army in excess of 600,000-strong and maintain elevated levels of defence spending of about 6.5% of the country's GDP, so threatening Nato's eastern flank. Rutte will first visit Sheffield Forgemasters, a nationalised steelmaker owned by the Ministry of Defence which makes complex components for nuclear submarines, before meeting Starmer and then giving his speech. The secretary general, a former Dutch prime minister, has been pushing a proposal for Nato members to agree to lift core defence spending to 3.5% of GDP by about 2035, with a further 1.5% on cyber and other related military infrastructure. Britain is expected to sign up to the plan, to be formally confirmed at the summit, as part of an effort to maintain the support of the US president, Donald Trump, who pressed for the new 5% target once he was elected president for the second time. Justifying the need for extra spending, Rutte is expected to say that Nato needs 'a 400% increase in air and missile defence' as part of a wider rearmament to maintain credible deterrence and defence. 'We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,' Rutte is expected to say, according to remarks trailed by Nato ahead of the speech, due to begin at 3.45pm London time (1645 GMT). There will also have to be wider restocking of weapons, run down initially during the long period of post-old ar peace and second, because so much has been donated to Ukraine to help it fend off the full-scale Russian invasion over the past three years. 'Our militaries also need thousands more armoured vehicles and tanks, millions more artillery shells, and we must double our enabling capabilities, such as logistics, supply, transportation, and medical support,' Rutte will add. Sign up to First Edition Our morning email breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what's happening and why it matters after newsletter promotion Britain has promised to increase defence spending from the current 2.33% of GDP to 2.5% by 2027 and to 3% in the early 2030s. But a week ago, Starmer acknowledged that discussions about Nato's future military needs were also taking place. 'There are discussions about what the contribution should be going into the Nato conference in two or three weeks' time,' the prime minister said as he unveiled the UK's strategic defence review, as part of a wider conversation about 'what sort of Nato will be capable of being as effective in the future'. Rutte is expected to welcome the UK's strategic defence review which he will say will 'enhance Nato's collective defence'. The document said Britain faced 'a new era of threat' and that in order to deter Russia the UK had to become, in the words of Starmer, 'battle-ready'. Last week, one of the three members of the defence review team, the foreign policy expert Fiona Hill, said the UK needed to recognise that Russia considered itself at war with Britain and that the US under Trump was no longer a reliable ally. 'We're in pretty big trouble,' Hill said in an interview with the Guardian.
BBC News
12-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Sheffield Forgemasters granted permission for new facility
A major steel producer has been granted permission to build a new plant which would include the country's largest machining specialists Sheffield Forgemasters will use the facility near Meadowhall to support manufacturing for defence Ministry of Defence bought the company in 2021 and the 16-acre site on Weedon Street will be operational by programmes director Craig Fisher said it "signals an amazing investment for the city and for the wider UK". Work is already underway to prepare the site, which will contain some of the largest and most advanced equipment ever produced for main building will be 32m tall and cover a space equal to 12 Olympic swimming pools, which Mr Fisher called "an iconic landmark".A second, smaller building will house a facility for testing products and a dedicated training area for new Fisher added that the new development would "create highly-skilled engineering jobs for decades to come"."This planning agreement will see construction of the largest machining hall of its kind in the UK, and regeneration of a prominent brownfield site in the city's industrial centre," he said."What we are creating in the centre of Britain's historical industrial heartland is unparalleled in the UK and will not only de-risk supply for the UK's defence programme, but it will also deliver technologically advanced and rewarding working facilities for our employees."Forgemasters has the capability to produce some of the largest bespoke engineered steel products in the world, with the capacity for castings weighing up to 350 tonnes, and the capacity for forgings weighing up to 200 new plant will be able to produce complex nuclear-grade components more of another new facility for forging is also underway on Brightside to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North or tell us a story you think we should be covering here.
