MP proposes ‘Made in England’ stamps to protect Stoke-on-Trent’s ceramics industry

An MP has proposed mandatory country of origin stamps to protect ceramic products made in Stoke-on-Trent.

Ruth Smeeth, Labour MP for Stoke-on-Trent North, told the House of Commons that ceramics produced abroad that are being sold as British are undercutting the industry.

She said: “Our great city of Stoke-on-Trent was built on the clay beneath us, which generations of Stokies, my constituents, shaped into a world-conquering industry.”

Smeeth said the area, known as the Potteries, has a reputation for ceramics which has been cultivated “over centuries”.

A major contributor in the area is the Emma Bridgewater factory in Hanley, which produces more than one million pieces of pottery each year.

Smeeth said: “Our ‘Made in England’ back stamp is the hallmark of top-quality ceramics. It is recognised in markets across the world; from North America to South Korea, British ceramics are in high demand, and with good reason. So the question I ask the House today is whether it will support this key industry and help us to celebrate the best of British manufacturing as we leave the European Union, because the British ceramics industry deserves no less.”

Smeeth described ceramics as a “living, breathing industry” that employs more than 8,000 people in north Staffordshire alone, while across the country more than 22,000 people work in the sector.

“Its economic contribution is comparable to that of the UK fishing industry, generating nearly £3bn for our economy and more than £500m in exports,” she said.

Smeeth told MPs that stamping would help “create a level playing field” for locally produced ceramics that face competition from cheaper mass produced wares from abroad.

“As we prepare for a post-Brexit world, it is my hope that this Bill will give us the opportunity to highlight the concerns of this vital industry and the chance to make a start on introducing commitments and protections within UK legislation,” she said.

“The bill is strongly supported throughout the sector. It is an opportunity for us to step up and make “Buy British” more than just a slogan, to answer the concerns of a vital sector of Britain’s manufacturing industry and to ensure that, in a post-Brexit world, our national legislative framework contains the protections that we need to secure a bright and healthy future for British ceramics.”