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British Steel

Symbolic image

The steelworks in Scunthorpe operated Britain's last functioning blast furnaces and thus the country's last domestic capacity to produce crude steel from iron ore. When the then Chinese owner, the Jingye Group, threatened to shut down the furnaces after failed negotiations over state support, Parliament passed the Steel Industry (Special Measures) Act in an emergency session on April 12, 2025, allowing the government to take operational control of the plant. Shutting down the blast furnaces would have ended Britain's ability to produce primary steel, since restarting them is technically extremely difficult and expensive. The government subsequently took British Steel fully into public ownership, with an independent assessor to decide on possible compensation for Jingye.

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Friday, 17 July 2026Economy

China condemns nationalization of British Steel

Britain took control of British Steel to secure its last capacity for crude-steel production. China's Ministry of Commerce sharply condemned the nationalization and threatened measures to protect Chinese companies. The previous owner was the Chinese Jingye group.

The British government justifies the move, according to the BBC, as protecting a vital national capability, after concerns arose that the former Chinese owner might close the plant in Scunthorpe. Al Jazeera stresses that Britain is thereby taking its last functioning steelworks into public hands. From the Chinese side the case looks different: the Global Times cites the Ministry of Commerce, MOFCOM, which condemns the nationalization and announces robust measures to protect the interests of Chinese firms. The dispute links industrial policy with geopolitics, as London seeks to save a strategic raw-materials industry from being wound down while also curbing Chinese influence over critical infrastructure. Restarting mothballed blast furnaces would be all but technically irreversible, which is why the government acted under time pressure.

BBC NewsGlobal TimesAl Jazeera