British Steel: ‘Anti-China rhetoric’ criticised as ‘absurd’ by embassy
China’s embassy in Britain has criticised the “arrogance, ignorance and twisted mindset” of UK politicians towards Chinese business, as it defended British Steel’s owner Jingye.
It comes after Jonathan Reynolds said that the nationalisation of the British Steel plant in Scunthorpe is the “likely option at this stage”, while stressing the need to secure a new private sector partner for the business due to the “very significant” scale of capital required for steel transformation.
It comes after he seemed to distance himself from his previous claim that he would not bring a Chinese company into the steel sector again after ministers had to urgently step in after talks with British Steel owners Jingye broke down.
The Chinese embassy’s spokesperson said: “The anti-China rhetoric of some individual British politicians is extremely absurd, reflecting their arrogance, ignorance and twisted mindset.”
They said Jingye was a private Chinese business and “conducts operation on its own” and pointed to years of losses by British Steel before Jingye took control in 2020.
The spokesperson said Jingye had put in “substantial funding” to keep British Steel afloat, and claimed workers could have been unemployed otherwise, adding that the decision to close blast furnaces and build electric arc furnaces is “normal” as part of the UK government’s net-zero strategy.
Speaking to reporters at the site in North Lincolnshire, Reynolds said the response from the British Steel workforce had been “fantastic”.
He said: “It wasn’t just about the situation with the raw materials – urgent and pressing as that was – there had been breakdown of trust and confidence between the shareholder and the workforce. That was really, really evident.
“What we are now going to do, having secured both control of the site and the supply of raw materials so the blast furnaces won’t close in a matter of days, is work on the future.”
Scunthorpe nationalisation?
And he continued: “We’ve got the ownership question, which is pressing.
“I was clear when I gave the speech in parliament. We know there is a limited lifespan of the blast furnaces and we know that what we need for the future is a private sector partner to come in and work with us on that transformation and co-fund that transformation.”
The secretary of state said: “All the workforce here are asking from me right now is that they didn’t lose their jobs effectively in a matter of days, because the raw material was going to run out for the blast furnaces, and to be a part of that conversation in a way which does what they are most passionate about, which is continuing steelmaking in this area.”
MPs and peers passed emergency legislation on Saturday to take over the Scunthorpe British Steel plant, which is home to the last furnaces in the UK capable of producing virgin steel.
The Jingye-owned company recently cancelled orders for the raw materials needed to keep the blast furnaces running, sparking a race against time to keep it going.
Materials, including coking coal, have been secured, but questions remain about the site’s long-term future and whether it will be fully nationalised or the private sector will get involved.
Chinese comments
The embassy spokesperson added: “At a time when the US is wielding the tariff stick against all countries, the UK included, and engaging in unilateral and protectionist trade bullying, those British politicians just keep slandering the Chinese government and Chinese enterprises instead of criticising the United States. What on earth are they up to?
“Any words or deeds that politicise or maliciously hype up business issues will undermine the confidence of Chinese business investors in the UK and damage China-UK economic and trade co-operation.”
They said they “urge” the government to “follow the principles of fairness, impartiality and non-discrimination” and protect the “legitimate rights and interests” of Chinese firms in the UK, as well as continuing “consultations and negotiations with Jingye” to reach a solution for all parties.
The criticism has come as the government has sought closer economic ties with Beijing, with Chancellor Rachel Reeves visiting in January and securing £600m in investment, and trade minister Douglas Alexander in the country for meetings in recent days.
But Treasury minister James Murray has suggested the government is striking a “balance” when it comes to Chinese investment into the UK, and highlighted the “highest level of scrutiny” on any “foreign investment or foreign involvement” when it comes to “critical infrastructure”.
He argued: “That’s the balance which the government is taking, making sure we’re protecting our national interests that encourage inward investment and trade around the world.”