There were a few spicy exchanges when Parliament was recalled to discuss the future of British steel on Saturday – and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey wasn’t afraid to lay down the gauntlet for his cross-bench opponents.
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Have US tariffs affected UK steel?
The emergency debate to save upwards of 2,700 jobs at the steelworks in Scunthorpe resulted in the submission of an emergency law, which is set for royal ascent. Nationalisation is now on the table, following a tumultuous time for the industry.
Though UK steel production has faced a number of challenges, ranging from Port Talbot to Scunthorpe, the introduction of higher tariffs for exports to the US is seen as a ‘tipping point’ among many elected officials – including Ed Davey.
The former cabinet minister used his time in Parliament yesterday to ask Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds a very simple, yet direct question. He probed the Labour representative on whether he thought apologies were due from two other party leaders.
Labour, Ed Davey rip into Nigel Farage over steel Tweets
He admonished Nigel Farage and Kemi Badenoch for ‘supporting the election of Donald Trump’ – a result which consequently led to higher tariffs for the steel industry. In fact, the Reform leader has been getting it from all sides over his previous opposition to nationalisation…
Watch: Ed Davey calls for ‘shamefully unpatriotic’ MPs to apologise
Though Reynolds avoided a direct confrontation, Davey demanded an apology from the respective party leaders, and lashed out at their allegedly ‘shamefully unpatriotic’ behaviour. This could prove to be an ongoing attack line for the Lib Dems, ahead of the Local Elections in May.
“Do you agree that, given the damage Trump’s tariffs have done to the British Steel industry… any member of this House that [supported] Trump’s election… has behaved shamefully unpatriotically, and should apologise to British Steel workers?” | Ed Davey