Michelle Thomson, the local MSP for Grangemouth has challenged Anas Sarwar and Labour’s decision not to step in to save the Grangemouth oil refinery.
Grangemouth is Scotland’s only refinery and supplies the majority of aviation fuel to Scotland’s airports, making it an important part of Britain’s energy security and economic ambitions.
The SNP claim that Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, is showing signs of breaking his promise that his party would “step in to save the jobs at the refinery” after u-turning to say that there was nothing the party could do since Grangemouth is part of a “privately owned company”, the British-Chinese corporation Petroineos.
Thomson criticised the hypocrisy of the recent decision by the government to reconvene on a weekend to save the financially troubled Chinese owned British Steel plant in Scunthorpe, saying: “It would appear the only reason these sites are not comparable, and why Westminster is not offering parity of treatment, is geography. One site is in England, the other is in Scotland.”
The Scunthorpe plant was saved in part due to its strategic importance, being the UK’s last steel mill capable of producing virgin steel, a material essential for construction projects like railways and buildings.
The SNP claim that the government’s decision to take control of the mill should be extended to Grangemouth with Thomson urging Anas Sarwar “to support a nationalisation plan for Grangemouth and as the Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland instruct Scottish Labour MPs to do likewise.”
She continues: “On Saturday, your Labour UK Government took the extraordinary step of recalling Westminster to press forward with plans to nationalise British Steel in a decision that will rightly protect jobs and a critical asset.
She explains that despite claims that Grangemouth’s financial situation cannot be compared with that of British Steel, the refinery is actually running less of a deficit than the steel plant, saying: “The Chinese company, Jingye, in Scunthorpe is reporting losses of around £700,000 whereas PetroChina, at Grangemouth reports losses of around £500,000.”
She continues: “That decision calls into question why the same could not be done for Grangemouth, which is vital to economic growth, supports thousands of jobs and is an asset of critical importance to both our energy and national security.
“You promised before the General Election that a UK Labour Government would ‘step in to save the jobs at the refinery’ and Daniel Johnson MSP said the refinery could be saved with a ‘small investment’.
Despite this, under Labour Government plans, the refinery will be lost and most jobs that could come from Project Willow recommendations will not be delivered until at least 2030.”
