Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill
House of Lords · Lords Chamber · 13 Jul 2026 · 16 speeches · Official Report
Third Reading
Scottish legislative consent granted, Northern Ireland and Welsh legislative consent sought. Relevant documents: 1st Report from the Constitution Committee, 3rd Report from the Delegated Powers Committee.
Motion
Moved by
That the Bill be now read a third time.
My Lords, I begin by making a short statement on legislative consent. The Government engaged with all three devolved Governments as soon as possible following the introduction of the Bill. A full devolution analysis was sent to all three devolved Governments on 18 May. Since then, my ministerial colleagues and officials have engaged at pace to address the issues that have been raised. I am pleased that the Scottish Parliament granted legislative consent to the Bill on 23 June. I thank UK Government and Scottish Government Ministers and officials for working constructively and at pace to reach that outcome before the Scottish Parliament rose for recess. In Wales, a legislative consent memorandum was laid on 1 July and a legislative consent Motion has been tabled for debate in the Senedd tomorrow. I am happy to report that the Government have been able to address the concerns raised by Welsh Ministers regarding the Bill. If the Government did decide to exercise the powers in the Bill, we would of course want to consider the appropriate governance. If a steel undertaking which had its principal place of business in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland were to be nationalised using the powers in the Bill, the Government would seek appropriate involvement for the relevant devolved Government to ensure that their views were considered in discussions where appropriate. This reflects the Government’s commitment to consulting the devolved Governments where decisions impact devolved...
Bill read a third time.
Motion
Moved by
That the Bill do now pass.
My Lords, steel has shaped our nation’s history. It has built railways, bridges, factories, ships, homes, energy infrastructure and defence capability. It remains essential to our future-to growth, resilience, national security and the critical infrastructure on which our country depends. This legislation is one part of the Government’s wider commitment to the steel sector. It gives us the tools to act decisively if strategic steel-making capability is at risk. It supports our objective of restoring confidence, protecting jobs, strengthening domestic capability and securing a sustainable future for UK steel. I express my sincere gratitude to noble Lords from across the House who have contributed to the scrutiny of the Bill. In particular, I thank the noble Lords, Lord Sharpe of Epsom, Lord Hunt of Wirral and Lord Fox, for the constructive, professional and friendly way in which they have engaged throughout. I am genuinely grateful. I also thank other noble Lords who have spoken with deep knowledge of industry, constitutional practice, devolution, public finance, workers’ interests and the wider economy; their contribution has helped ensure that this House has done its job properly. Finally, I thank the Bill team, my private office, officials from across government, the devolved Government officials who have engaged with us, parliamentary counsel and the House authorities for their work in supporting the passage of this legislation at pace and under considerable pressure....
My Lords, I thank my noble friends Lord Sharpe of Epsom and Lord Redwood, and the noble Lord, Lord Fox, for their considerable contributions and the expertise they have demonstrated throughout our consideration of the Bill. I also pay tribute to the two committees of this House that have contributed so much to our understanding of this urgent matter in their excellent reports-the Constitution Committee and the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee. I also extend my thanks to the noble Lord, Lord Leong, the Minister, who has taken a very close interest throughout not only in the case for the Government taking the action that they have but in understanding our concern on a number of aspects. I thank his officials and the Bill team for all their hard work. Although significant differences remain between us, the Minister has always engaged constructively with concerns raised on all sides of the House, and I believe that the Bill has been improved as a result of that engagement. Working together, we have secured a more credible sunset mechanism: any extension of the principal transfer powers will be limited to two years and will require the affirmative approval of both Houses. We have secured provisions requiring the Secretary of State to consider the likely costs before exercising the share transfer power or the property transfer power. We have also ensured that the relevant environmental, pension, and health and safety liabilities must be properly reflected in the...
My Lords, I agree with the Minister that the Bill is an important element in securing the future of the vital steel industry. It is, of course, a first step. There is an awful lot to do. The Bill leaves your Lordships’ House in a better state than when it arrived. For example, it is now mandatory for overall costs of nationalisation to be taken into consideration by the Secretary of State when assessing the public interest; environmental legacy costs must be fully assessed by the valuer; there will be parliamentary debates and quarterly Written Ministerial Statements; the management of a business that is nationalised will be quizzed by Select Committees, and the steel council will better represent steel users. Those are all important steps, and many are improvements on parliamentary accountability, which was the mission that we on these Benches set ourselves at the beginning of this debate. I echo the Minister in saying that that could not have been achieved without co-operation and debate. I thank the Minister, his team and the departmental team for their openness, availability and flexibility. I thank the Minister in the Commons too for the time that he spent. I thank the noble Lords, Lord Sharpe and Lord Hunt, who remained, as ever, amiable debate company as we wended our way through the Bill. Finally, I thank Ulysse Abbate in the Lib Dem Whips’ Office, whose support has been superb. As I said, the Bill has been materially changed. I hope that the Commons accept our...
My Lords, I apologise to the noble Lords, Lord Fox, Lord Hunt and Lord Sharpe. Their amendments were to this Bill and not to the trains Bill. Nevertheless, the point stands. The attendance was no greater than when it was debated in Grand Committee. I apologise and sincerely hope that they realise that I was so involved with both Bills that, in my enthusiasm, I erred. I am sorry.
My Lords, I just want to say a huge thank you to the noble Lords, Lord Hunt and Lord Fox, for their kind words and co-operation during the passage of the Bill.
Bill passed and returned to the Commons with amendments.