state control and introduced collective ownership, and a certain amount of competition, into a manufacturing industry. It has also been seen as significant as it 'sheds light on the policy of nationalisation'. It has been described as being doctrinally inspired. And 'a highly exceptional measure... pushed through Parliament with great vigour and determination'. It has been seen as ‘nationalisation for clearly ideological reasons’; since the government 'was so persistent with a measure which can fairly be described as in no way popular'. It was argued that the iron and steel industry was progressive and efficient with good labour relations. And that public ownership was necessary to compel the industry to follow a policy in the national interest. Although different to the nationalisation of the coal, transport, electricity and gas industries the method of nationalisation through the acquisition of shares was similar to that used for the Bank of England (1946) and Cable and Wireless Limited (1947). Government policy and later enactments Nationalisation of iron and steel production had been strongly opposed by the Conservative opposition. The act went into effect in February 1951, meaning that its implementation would occur during the 1951 general election season. On returning to power in October 1951 they planned to denationalise and return the industry to the private sector. This policy was enacted through the Iron and Steel Act 1953. The Iron and Steel Act 1953 (1 & 2 Eliz. 2 c. 15) received Royal Assent on 14 May 1953. Section 1 of the 1953 Act repealed the Iron and Steel Act 1949 and dissolved the Iron and Steel Corporation. It transferred the corporation's properties, rights, liabilities and obligations to a newly established Iron and Steel Holding and Realisation Agency. The Agency gradually sold the nationalised companies back into the private sector with the exception of Richard Thomas and Baldwins which remained in public ownership until it was absorbed into the British Steel Corporation in 1967. The 1953 act also established a new Iron and Steel Board which began operating on 13 July 1953. The Board had a duty 'to exercise a general supervision over the iron and steel industry... with a view to promoting the efficient, economic and adequate supply, under competitive conditions, of iron and steel products'. The work of the Board and the Agency was thus parallel and complementary. The 1953 Act remained in force until the Labour government re-nationalised the iron