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"The long-term solution is to take British Steel into public ownership, invest in it for British industry, and for British Steel and for the workers in Lincolnshire," he added.

On Tuesday, North Lincolnshire Council voted unanimously in favour of the company being brought back into public ownership, while last week in Parliament, Conservative MPs and the deputy leader of Reform UK, Richard Tice, also called for nationalisation.

However, he declined to comment on reports that public ownership was being actively considered by ministers, saying: "We are talking to the company. It's in private ownership, that is the situation that we have inherited, we are trying to find a way through that."

Public ownership of the UK's railways is not a "silver bullet" for guaranteeing a better service for passengers, the transport secretary has said.

Northern was taken into public ownership under the Conservative government in 2020 but its performance has failed to improve.