We’ve heard a lot about nationalising British Steel but a lot less about how to unlock the growth and private investment that can help towns like Scunthorpe stand on their own two feet, says Emma Revell

The first broadcast interview I ever did was about steel. It was 2019, Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell were setting out their plans for the renationalisation of a raft of sectors, including steel, and ITV Yorkshire wanted someone to make the argument against. I imagine when my boss told the producer “Well, we’ve got a woman from Scunthorpe…” his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree.

After it aired, people I knew from back home made disappointed comments about how I seemed to want the steelworks to close. I didn’t say that, of course, but I understand why it might have sounded like I did.

Those of us who believe in the free market can often be perceived as quite hard-headed. If the numbers don’t add up, if the service isn’t good enough, if the demand isn’t there, a company should go bust. Creative destruction is a good thing. But if you’re in an industry that is being creatively destroyed, it definitely doesn’t feel that way. So advocates for the power of markets perhaps need to spend more time talking........

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