Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill Committee: Amendment 20

Parliament defeated Amendment 20 to the Steel Industry (Nationalisation) Bill on 9 June 2026, by 290 votes to 90. The amendment was brought forward by Conservative MPs and sought to alter the terms under which the steel industry would pass into public ownership. The government's majority held comfortably, and the amendment fell by a margin of 200 votes. The vote is one stage in the passage of legislation to nationalise the UK steel industry. The Bill, if enacted, will transfer ownership of steel assets to the state, reversing the privately held structure that has existed in the sector. Amendment 20 would have modified how that transfer operates, and its defeat means the government's preferred framework remains intact. The outcome affects steelworkers, communities dependent on steel production, and the broader industrial policy direction of the current administration. The division followed strict party lines. All 251 Labour MPs and all 26 Labour and Co-operative MPs present voted against the amendment, giving the government a solid bloc of 277 no votes. The 82 Conservative MPs present voted unanimously for the amendment, joined by four Democratic Unionist Party members, two independents, one Restore Britain MP, and one Traditional Unionist Voice MP. Reform UK's three present members voted no alongside the government. This division continues a pattern visible in earlier committee votes on the Bill, including the defeat of Amendment 12 and New Clause 2 the previous day, where opposition amendments consistently fell by similar margins.