British Steel ‘planning to axe 800 jobs’ despite bidding for £300m taxpayer-funded grant
British Steel has been covertly planning to slash jobs despite ongoing talks with the government which could see the industrial firm receive a multi-million pound grant funded by taxpayers’ money, according to reports.
The Chinese-owned group may cut 800 roles predominantly in its Scunthorpe headquarters in north Lincolnshire, Sky News has reported.
The termination of coke ovens, used to manufacture iron and steel, are apparently behind the cuts. The Scunthorpe site also has two blast furnaces and other mills which will carry on as usual.
British Steel declined to comment at this moment.
This has emerged even as Britain’s second largest steel producer remains in continued discussions with the government about a £300m funding deal largely based on the proviso that the company provide decade-long job guarantees.
Climate groups have called on the government to ensure that British Steel and rival Tata Steel use the £600m in taxpayer funds (divided equally between the producers) to accelerate the transition to a greener production line.
The steel giants have fallen into trouble in the past year and the government subsidy is a lifeline for them.
However, ministers have demanded that the money secures the continuation of thousands of jobs so the redundancy whispers now throw the grant into uncertainty.
British Steel employs around 4,000 workers, although thousands more jobs across the supply chain rely on the company.
The Department for Business Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have been asked for comment.