1. Will the First Minister outline the Welsh Government's support for steel manufacturing? OAQ53665

Llywydd, the Welsh Government supports the steel sector economy in Wales both directly and indirectly. Investments in innovation, research and development, skills development and procurement all reflect our recognition of the importance of steel manufacturing to the Welsh economy.

Thank you, First Minister. I do welcome your written statement earlier today on steel research and development. I'm aware that Liberty group have launched a green steel strategy, which recycles steel. Now, they say that this will transform manufacturing, reinvigorate the supply chain and generate new skilled jobs, in turn securing the future for the steel industry here in Wales. What considerations have your Government and yourself given to investing and supporting this particular scheme and other schemes and strategies like it? 

Well, Llywydd, I thank the Member for pointing to the green steel proposals of Liberty Steel. They are a very important contribution to discussions on the future of the steel sector, and I commend the company for the work that they have carried out in Newport to date. I was fortunate enough, Llywydd, to have a tour of the Liberty Steel premises in Newport earlier last year and to hear directly from the company about their plans for the future. So, at an official level, discussions with the company were carried out last year in relation to the state of the ideas that they are bringing forward under the green steel vision at that point. The Member will understand that there was a series of issues that arose for the Government in relation to them. There are balance sheet issues that Members in this Chamber will be familiar with, which have to involve the Office for National Statistics and Eurostat in relation to any financial assistance that the Government might provide. There are state aid issues that have to be explored, and, of course, there are value-for-money issues in any investment that the Welsh Government might make. Those discussions took place last year. Officials continue to be engaged with Liberty Steel on a regular basis, as we see how we can work with this company in taking forward the very interesting ideas that they are bringing to the table.  

In the written statement today, you talk about reducing emissions and about modernising the steel workforce in relation to the power plant and in relation to the new facilities that are available. Of course, this was as part of a Plaid Cymru and Welsh Government budget negotiation, and I'm just curious to understand what phase we are at now in relation to releasing the funds for future phases. We've had many a discussion in the cross-party group on steel, wanting to progress this development but perhaps not understanding fully when future phases will be able to be released, to make sure that we can be as environmentally friendly as possible in the Port Talbot steelworks, but also making sure that it's a modern place for people to work as well.  

I thank the Member for that important question. I know that she, as others in this Chamber, welcomed the announcement in February of this year that Swansea University was appointed to lead a £35 million project, with other universities as well, specifically aimed at making the steel industry fit for the future in terms of emissions and the low-carbon economy that we want to create. Today's joint written statement by the Minister for Economy and Transport and the Minister for Education focused on the research and development support for the steel industry that the Welsh Government has been able to assist with.

In the autumn of last year, I met, with the then First Minister and others, with the chief executive of the Tata Steel group in the United Kingdom. I've since met with other senior members in the Tata group, and we are very close now, I believe, to being able to finalise a further series of investments of the sort that were agreed with Plaid Cymru and that we have had to work through with the company. The company, as you know, is itself undergoing a restructuring, and that leads to some complexities in making sure that the necessary guarantees can be put in place. But we are very close now to the point where I hope we will be able to make that announcement. My colleague Ken Skates will write to all Members when those discussions are finally concluded.  

First Minister, can I once again put on record my appreciation, and that of the steelworkers in Port Talbot, for the Welsh Government's commitment to the steel industry over the years? This has actually stood up for steel manufacturing here in the UK. It's the only Government that has actually done so, in contrast to the UK Government, which continues to fail to support the steel industry. In fact, last week, the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Select Committee in the House of Commons published a report, and it concluded, in relation to steel:

'The Government’s misrepresentation of the steel sector’s proposals for a sector deal suggest that it is unwilling to meet the requests of the sector.'

It recommended:

'The Government should return to discussions with the sector on a potential deal and provide clarity on the asks and offers that could enable the Government to meet its commitment to develop the UK steel industry'— and here's the important point—

'supporting a now commercially sustainable sector in a competitive global market.'

Many of the levers that we have talked about in the past—the energy costs—are with the UK Government. Will you now make further representations to the UK Government, supporting this committee's report and asking the UK Government to take action to address the issue of high energy costs, to ensure that our steel industry is a competitive industry within the global market?  

Well, Llywydd, I want to thank the Member for his recognition of the support that the Welsh Government has provided to Tata in his constituency in the difficult times that the steel industry has faced during this Assembly term. It's been a pleasure to have the opportunity to visit Tata Steel twice in recent months—on both occasions with the local Member. I've seen the report to which he refers, the BEIS Select Committee report published on 19 March. It is hard-hitting in what it says to the UK Government in relation to the steel sector. The report says that the sector itself presented the UK Government with a united front and an ambitious series of proposals, and that they were not only disregarded by the UK Government, but that they were misrepresented by that Government as well. I think that that is strong language from a select committee. We know how much the sector is frustrated by the UK Government's refusal to act, for example, in relation to electricity prices for heavy industry. Certainly, I give the Member an assurance that we will be in contact with the UK Government again, on the back of that select committee report, and on the back of everything that trade unions and the management of the Tata plant tell us that they need from the UK Government in order to secure that successful future.