Holy hell, what a week. I've been glued to my phone since Saturday when the emergency laws passed. My colleague texted me at 11pm: "They actually did it. Government stepping in." I nearly spilled my late-night tea all over the couch.
When Beijing's business dealings went south
So here's the deal - Chinese firms are basically getting shown the door when it comes to Britain's critical industries. The Business Secretary (Reynolds, not the most exciting bloke but surprisingly direct this time) has essentially told Beijing there's now a "high trust bar" for their companies trying to buy into sensitive sectors.
And by "high trust bar" he means "not bloody likely."
I spoke to a former steel worker in Scunthorpe last year while researching an unrelated story. Poor guy. He told me his dad and grandfather both worked those same furnaces. "This place is in our blood," he said, looking genuinely worried about the future. Turns out his concerns were justified.
The £700K daily money pit
Reynolds didn't mince words on Sky yesterday. "We have to be clear about the sectors where we can co-operate, and ones we can't. I wouldn't personally bring a Chinese company into our steel sector." That's about as clear as politicians get without actually saying "we made a massive error letting Jingye buy this in teh first place."
The emergency powers granted Saturday are extraordinary - they literally give the government authority to overrule Jingye and force British Steel staff to keep the furnaces running.
While British Steel hemorrhages about £700,000 every single day (that's nearly £5 million a week!), Reynolds argued that letting it collapse completely would cost the UK around £1billion. My accountant friend calls this "choosing between terrible and catastrophic" financial options.
Was this China's plan all along?
Listen. I'm not usually one to jump on conspiracy theories, but Farage might actually have a point here. He told the BBC: "I am certain they bought British Steel to close British Steel." That's a bold claim, suggesting the 2020 purchase was a "strategic decision by the Chinese Communist Party."
Reynolds, trying to be diplomatic (gotta maintain those trade relations), acknowledged CCP links but insisted he was "not accusing the Chinese state of being directly behind this." Hmm.
Back in 2020, I remember writing about the Jingye purchase with cautious optimism. God. Feels like a lifetime ago now, doesn't it? Pre-pandemic optimism that seems laughable in hindsight.
Net Zero or net loss?
The most frustrating part? Jingye pointed fingers at electricity costs tied to environmental policies. Yet Reynolds flatly rejected calls to ease Net Zero targets.
I spent $230 on my last electric bill for a one-bedroom flat. I can't imagine what powering massive steel furnaces costs. It's like comparing a candle to the sun.
A source close to the negotiations (who texted me at an ungodly hour this morning) claims more than a dozen firms have offered to help secure raw materials for the Scunthorpe works since the government intervention. His response: "Too little, too late for the Chinese owners, but maybe just in time for British Steel."
What happens next? (Spoiler: probably nationalization)
While the government would prefer another private company to swoop in and save the day, Reynolds admitted full-scale nationalization is the "likely" outcome.
This whole saga reminds me of that time my brother bought a "fixer-upper" house in 2018, only to discover the foundation was crumbling. Sometimes what looks like a bargain ends up costing you everything.
The Scunthorpe furnaces have been part of the British industrial landscape since... well, forever it seems. Watching them nearly go dark feels like watching a piece of our national identity flicker out.
I'll be tracking this story as it develops. Something tells me we haven't heard the last from Jingye... or the workers whose livelihoods hang in the balance.
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