Politics and Steel in Britain, 1967-1988. The life and times of the British Steel Corp

Notes:

Deals with the relationship of successive governments with the nationalised steel industry - British Steel Corp - and their inability to gain strategic or financial control over BSC, especially in the context of the firm's massive but ill-conceived investment programme, initiated in the 1970s, which resulted in rationalisation, closures, redundancies, etc, in the 1980s. Examines and analyses in detail the development of BSC to mid 1980s; then considers the lead-up to its demise in 1988 and rebirth as British Steel Plc; then deals with BSC's relationship with a range of interested parties who determined its fortunes, one being the European Economic Community and others being trade unions, suppliers, customers, etc. 'Our analysis leads to the conclusion that, to a large extent, government may be able to exercise greater power as an arbiter and regulator between interests rather than attempting to exercise direct control over an organisation such as the BSC'. Has sections: 'Introduction - steel as a political issue'; 'Development of the UK steel industry'; 'The BSC. Heritage and development, 1967-73'; 'Closure programme. Implementation problems'; 'BSC and the Labour government, 1975-79'; '1980 Steel Strike'; 'Political facets of the BSC in the early to mid 1980s'; 'The EEC and a state of manifest crisis'; 'The long road to viability and privatisation'; 'The BSC and its customers'; 'The politics of expertise'; 'Power in the policy process'