I'm absolutely livid about this. Keir Starmer has THREE DAYS to save what's left of our steel industry before it collapses entirely. Three bloody days! That's the warning Nigel Farage just delivered, and honestly, I'm not sure our PM has the backbone to make the tough call needed here.
Let me tell you what's happening. The Reform boss (love him or hate him) showed up at British Steel's Scunthorpe plant yesterday and called for "immediate nationalisation" - yes, you read that right. Farage, the free-market champion, pushing for government ownership. It's like watching your vegetarian uncle suddenly order a rare steak. Times have changed.
Friday Deadline: The Point of No Return
The workers at Scunthorpe revealed something terrifying. Unless there's a firm commitment to buy raw materials by Friday, those blast furnaces will go cold. And once they're cold? They can't be restarted.
God. It's like watching a slow-motion car crash.
The Chinese owners Jingye (who bought the company back in 2020) have already cancelled key orders for iron ore and coal. They're clearly preparing to shut up shop, which puts around 2,700 jobs on teh chopping block. These aren't just numbers - these are families, communities, generations of skilled workers about to be tossed aside.
What's Starmer's response? Typical political waffle...
Our Prime Minister insists that "all options are on the table" amid rumors he's considering nationalisation. He added some meaningless platitude about "doing everything we can to ensure there is a bright future for Scunthorpe."
I spoke with a steelworker last night (my cousin's husband has been there 17 years) and his response: "We've heard it all before. Words don't keep furnaces hot."
Farage's Fury
Speaking from the steps of the threatened site, Farage didn't mince words: "If the Government don't act by Friday, that is the end of steelmaking in our country. It has to happen before the end of this week. The orders for these primary commodities have to go in."
Reform UK's Deputy Leader Richard Tice also unveiled a broader plan that actually makes sense - taking over Liberty Steel's idle electric arc furnaces in Rotherham and merging them with Scunthorpe into a single state-backed operation. "If the Chinese are giving up on British Steel, well the British people do not want to give up on British Steel. Let's use this as an opportunity."
I never thought I'd agree with these guys, but here we are in 2025, and they're the ones fighting for British industry while Labour wrings its hands.
The Money Mess
Industry minister Sarah Jones hosted an emergency meeting of the Steel Council with various bigwigs from the sector. She tried to calm nerves by mentioning the Network Charging Compensation scheme - worth £15million in May and over £300million this year.
But is it enough? And more importantly, is it in time?
Meanwhile, Tory chief Kemi Badenoch said nationalising British Steel must be a "last resort." Classic Conservative response - ideologically opposed to state intervention even when an entire industry is about to vanish.
The Chinese Connection
Look, I've been following this story since 2020 when Jingye took over. They demanded a £1billion bailout to help the plant go green, but threatened to pull the plug when the government offered only half that amount.
Farage thinks there's no point in upping the offer now: "I'm not sure they even want it. They seem to be quite happy to close it, quite frankly."
Back in 2018, I visited Scunthorpe for a piece I was writing on traditional British industries. The pride those workers had... it was something else. One guy, Dave, had been there 32 years - same as his father before him. "This place is in our blood," he told me over a pint that cost £3.80 (I remember because I was shocked how cheap it was compared to London).
And now we're watching the last gasp of British steelmaking. It feels like we're witnessing the end of an era, and our government is just standing there with its hands in its pockets.
What happens when a country can't make its own steel?
Three days. That's all we've got left to save an industry that built this nation.
I'm not usually one for dramatic ultimatums, but sometimes the clock really is ticking. And this time, it's about to strike midnight on British steel.
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