Recommendation 21

In September 2024, the government announced it would provide £2.5 billion support for the steel sector.61 The Department acknowledged that much of this would be spent on the Scunthorpe site, but could not give us a precise figure, saying only that some funding had been allocated to the National Wealth Fund and that support for Speciality Steel UK (SSUK) and Sheffield Forgemasters was separate. The Department agreed that SSUK would need funding until the Official Receiver can agree a sale. The Department told us that a deal to sell SSUK to a preferred bidder has fallen through, and more support from the Department is likely to be needed.62 Unite the Union said 57 Department for Business and Trade, The UK Steel Strategy, March 2026; Department for Business and Trade, The UK’s Modern Industrial Strategy 2025, June 2025 58 Q 55 59 Q 41 60 Q 72 61 C&AG’s Report, para 13 62 Qq 63-68, 72 16 that it would like to see more “meat put on the bones” of the strategy, and the Community Trade Union said developing a plan for acquiring the scrap metal to power electric arc furnaces was “key”.63