Was Reynolds nobbled by Number 10 over China?

It was Margaret Thatcher who famously said that in politics, the unexpected always happens.

And the latest evidence for that is a series of bizarre twists in the political fallout over Scunthorpe steelworks and China.

First, the business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has unexpectedly performed a shock U-turn on Chinese involvement in steel.

And second, those sworn Brexit enemies the Liberal Democrats and Reform UK have agreed on one thing: they want nothing to do with China.

So is Mr Reynolds’ U-turn the result of being nobbled by Number 10? It certainly looks like it, given what appeared to be a Downing Street slap-down on Monday.

On Sunday, he told Sir Trevor Phillips on Sky News: “I wouldn’t personally bring a Chinese company into our steel sector.”

Pressed by Sir Trevor, he said: “I wouldn’t, no. I think steel is a very sensitive area.”

He even accused David Cameron – who famously took the Chinese president for a pint in a pub – and George Osborne of being “far too naive” about China.

And when Sir Trevor said: “There’s a high trust bar now, isn’t there?” Mr Reynolds replied: “Yes, we’ve got to recognise that.”

Two days later, pressed on his Sky News interview during a visit to Immingham docks, he said: “In this case, our difference of opinion on the future was with a specific company.

“I know there’s a lot of interest in the wider UK-China relationship, understandably so. But this was about this company.”

And he added: “I’m really keen to stress the action we’ve taken here was to step in because it was one specific company…”

So that’s clear then? Or is it? What’s changed?

What changed is that on Monday, Number 10 insisted there was no block on China from essential industries, even steel.

The prime minister’s spokesman said: “We already a have a rigorous regime for assessing any involvement in critical infrastructure. That includes looking at the role of China in our supply chains and investment infrastructure.”

Got that, Mr Reynolds? He has now, obviously.

Nigel Farage hasn’t. “The very thought the government could even contemplate another Chinese owner of British Steel is truly dreadful,” the Reform UK leader declared while campaigning in Durham.

“There’s no such thing as a private company in China. They’re all effectively under the control of the Chinese Communist Party. Clearly, the government has learned nothing if they’re prepared to say this.

“I would go further. I wouldn’t have China in our nuclear programme, anywhere near our telecoms or anything else. They are not our friends.”

Guess who agrees with that? “Giving another Chinese firm ownership of British Steel would be like coming home to find your house ransacked and then leaving your doors unlocked!” said an outraged Lib Dem MP, Calum Miller.

No doubt, the Lib Dems are outraged by China’s refusal to allow their MP Wera Hobhouse being denied entry into Hong Kong to visit her newborn grandson. And who can blame them?

Mr Farage also spoke about visiting the Scunthorpe blast furnaces last week, claiming: “Not, by the way, an out-of-character thing for me to do, because I worked for 22 years in the metals business before getting involved in politics.”

Really? The metals business? Well, Mr Farage certainly has some brass neck. He was, in fact, a commodities trader in the City of London. OK, so presumably those commodities did include metal.

And what of the government? Despite Mr Reynolds accusing Mr Cameron and Mr Osborne of naivety, Sir Keir Starmer’s senior ministers have actively wooed China too.

Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, visited China in January to promote “new opportunities” for investment. Ed Miliband, the energy secretary, signed up to close ties with China on energy during a visit last month and Douglas Alexander, the trade minister, has been in China this week.

Yet former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith has insisted ministers must ban China from critical infrastructure and claimed former Labour prime minister Clement Attlee “would be turning in his grave”.

And what of Margaret Thatcher and her famous quote? Well, it was the Iron Lady herself who privatised British Steel in the 1980s – and opened the door to Chinese involvement.