MP puts spotlight on West Midlands steelwork expertise

MP for Tipton and Wednesbury, Antonia Bance, praised the strength and potential of the UK’s constructional steelwork sector following a visit to locally-based specialist fabricator Angle Ring.

Supplying a range of precision-engineered steel products used across the construction and infrastructure sectors, Angle Ring plays a key role in the regional supply chain, supporting a range of nationwide projects.

The MP discussed the company’s operations, growth ambitions and the challenges facing manufacturers. A key focus of the discussions was the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) and how many energy-intensive firms operating within the constructional steelwork sector are currently excluded from the scheme, despite the nature of their workloads.

Antonia Bance MP said: “I have already taken up a number of issues raised with me by Angle Ring and the BCSA, including raising the issue of public money being spent on procuring foreign-made constructional steel products when I was questioning ministers at the Business Select Committee.”

Daniel Barnshaw, Managing Director at Angle Ring, said: “We were delighted to welcome Antonia to our Tipton facility and to show her the scale and complexity of the work we do.

“As an energy-intensive manufacturer, rising energy costs and our current exclusion from schemes such as BICS have a real impact on our ability to compete and invest for the future. It was encouraging to have the opportunity to discuss these challenges directly and to highlight the importance of fair support for companies like ours.”