Chancellor Rachel Reeves says the government should be buying more UK-made ceramics to help save ‘British jobs and British heritage’.Ms Reeves visited Dunoon Ceramics in Stone on Tuesday, following her announcement last week of a £120 million support package for the ceramics sector.She said the funding would help the industry modernise and cope with surging energy costs, but admitted that more could be done for struggling manufacturers in Staffordshire and elsewhere.Ms Reeves has written to ministers instructing them to ‘buy British’ wherever possible, focusing on procurement in shipbuilding, steel, energy and AI.But she believes the same logic should apply to British-made ceramics, acknowledging the importance of the industry in place like Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire.Along with rocketing energy costs, UK ceramics firms have also had to contend with cheaper foreign imports, and there have been calls for greater protection of the ‘Made in England’ label.Ms Reeves said: “Ceramics brings something like £1.2 billion a year to the UK economy, and particularly in this area it’s incredibly important for jobs and livelihoods. And actually more than that, it’s a way of life and a heritage that we should be incredibly proud of in our country.”I know that there is more to be done to support the ceramics industry, but this £120 million fund is more than a sticking plaster. It’s about trying to get to grips with some of the high costs in this sector, the costs of energy.
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“I’m determined to use government procurement to buy more things made in Britain. We’re spending billions more on investment in infrastructure, and I want that money to be spent here in the UK, creating good jobs, whether that is in the energy industry, in shipbuilding, for defence, in road and rail construction.”I want those jobs here in Britain and ceramics is another good example of where we should be using British pounds to support British jobs and British industry.”Ms Reeves expressed support for Stoke-on-Trent Central MP Gareth Snell’s ‘Backstamp Bill’, which would require country of origin marking for ceramic products sold in the UK.She added: “I very much support what he’s doing to try and ensure that there’s greater honesty or clarity about where things are actually made, and the government will absolutely work with Gareth to do everything we can.”And I’ve heard as well today about concerns over stuff coming in from overseas that isn’t properly labelled or marked. So I encourage people, when they go out and buy new mugs or plates, whatever it might be, to look at where it’s made.”It’s great to be able to support British jobs and British heritage as well. That’s what these reflect, it’s part of who we are as a country.”The £120 million support package will be made up of £60 million of capital investment for energy efficiency and decarbonisation projects, alongside £60 million in revenue support to help firms manage higher electricity costs.The government is working with the sector to finalise the details of the scheme, and applications for support will open in the summer.
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Dunoon’s director, Alan Smith, welcomed the funding announcement but said he would need to ‘delve down ‘ into the detail. The family-run company was established more than 50 years ago and still makes all its fine bone china in Staffordshire.Dunoon employs 80 people and exports to 51 countries worldwide.Mr Smith said that while manufacturing in the UK is ‘very difficult’ due to the higher costs, the ‘Made in England’ label is valued all around the world.He said: “The big problem for the ceramics industry at the moment is that we have seen a huge increase in gas prices. It means that finding the funds for investment is more difficult, with all the extra costs of gas and employment costs and National Insurance costs that we’ve sustained over the last few years.”But we are very pleased that the government seem to be listening and recognise that ceramics is a vital industry for the country.”With our fine bone china, the ‘Made in England’ brand is so important to us worldwide. That’s what we keep pushing and we don’t compromise on quality of design.”But the concern is the ever-increasing costs that we have to sustain. It makes it very difficult to do business in the UK, but that’s what we intend to do.”Mr Smith added that he wanted to see ‘better ties’ with Europe, which is Dunoon’s biggest export market.
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