1. Will the Welsh Government provide an update on the action taken since the announcement of the proposed closure of the Orb Steelworks in Newport? 339

Thank you for the question. The Welsh Government has engaged with the company to understand what this announcement means and how we can best support those affected.

I'm grateful for the involvement of Welsh Government and, indeed, of course, the strong campaign by the trade unions on behalf of the workforce and grateful for the commitment that's been received that there will not be any compulsory redundancies but redeployment, possibly, in the Tata plants at Llanwern and Port Talbot. But the primary campaign, of course, is to keep the plant open and I'd be grateful for some insight into Welsh Government's activities in terms of working with the trade unions and workforce, with industry, and with UK Government to look at the possibility of the necessary investment, which, I think, Tata put at £50 million, to keep the plant open and equip it to provide electrical steel for electric cars, which we all expect to be produced en masse in the very near future. I said at First Minister's questions that the whole history of that plant and the workforce has been about adaptability, adapting to change, developing new skills, new methods of production, new products. So, the history of innovation and adaptability and flexibility is there, which, I think, is very promising for the future. The missing ingredient, really, is the necessary investment, and that's where I'd really like assurance from Welsh Government that you are working with the workforce, the trade unions, UK Government and industry to facilitate and encourage that investment.

Thank you for the question. As I say, we have been in close discussions with the company and with the trade unions. My colleague Ken Skates spoke to the company immediately on the news breaking and officials have since been to the local plant to meet with the team there. We are reassured that the existing workforce will be fully redeployed, as we understand it, within Tata—that no worker that wants to continue working will be left without an opportunity—which is of some comfort, though, of course, it's a matter of deep regret that the facility has been lost to Newport and to the Welsh manufacturing sector.

This, obviously, is a decision for Tata. We have supported Tata with a considerable amount of money. Were it not for the intervention of the Welsh Government, Tata would no longer be manufacturing steel in the UK at all, certainly if left to the UK Government, which offered a lot of words but no action in the light of the steel crisis back in 2016. So, I think we have a strong record of intervening to make sure that steel production remained in Wales. Of course, the Orb site has been for sale since May 2018. The company tell us that it's been running at a loss and they've been unable to find a viable way forward for the plant. It's not correct to say that the steel made in Orb is used for electric vehicles, as some media have reported. That sort of steel is made by Tata in its Swedish plant, but it's not made in Orb, and in order to rekit the factory to produce that steel, it would need a considerable investment that Tata simply did not think was justifiable, given the state of the market, given the uncertainty of trading conditions, and given, also, the uncertainty in the market for electric vehicles—whether the demand simply isn't there at the moment and may not be there for some time. So, this is ultimately a decision for Tata. They themselves, who are a profit-making company, cannot find a way of making a profit from further investment in this plant. We are working with them to try and make sure that the existing workforce have as prosperous a future as could possibly be managed, but we continue to work with John Griffiths as the Assembly Member, and the local council, and the trade unions, to see if there is an alternative available to keep some manufacturing in the facility. There is a role for the UK Government here to step in and take a strategic view. We've been calling on them to come forward with a sector deal for the steel sector. The trade unions and UK Steel have been issuing similar calls and they have simply not stepped up to the mark. So, in terms of the longer term prospects of the industry in the UK, the UK Government needs to do far more to make sure it has a viable future.

Minister, news that up to 380 jobs are at risk at Tata Steel's Orb plant is a devastating blow to the workers and their families directly affected and to Newport as a whole. Tata has said it hopes to offer jobs to those affected elsewhere in Wales. So, can I ask what assistance you will provide to those workers who can relocate, and how you will ensure that those workers, unable or unwilling to move, are aware of the support and training possibilities available so that they can seek new employment elsewhere?

Further, I understand that Tata Steel has been attempting to find a buyer for Orb Electrical Steels. Can I ask, Minister, if Tata has approached the Welsh Government for assistance in finding a buyer? And if not, will you given an assurance that every assistance will be provided, even if at a late stage, to Tata industries? Thank you.

Thank you. I can confirm that Tata have not asked for any assistance from the Welsh Government, though we are working closely with them to make sure that any assistance the workforce needs is provided.

It is worth pointing out that the uncertainty of the market that Tata's operating within has been a contributing factor for their decision to close the plant. If we are to leave the European Union without a deal, then steel imports into the EU face a quota of 25 per cent—that's a quarter increase on price of steel being exported into Europe. And similarly, if a World Trade Organization situation was to come about, as we frequently hear from Mark Reckless and others, as providing some kind of bucolic free trade solution to the future of the UK economy, that could mean that Chinese imports flood the UK market as tariffs are lowered on them. So, the two scenarios of Brexit—of tariffs going into the EU or tariffs coming off Chinese steel coming in—are very real factors in the decisions these global trading companies are making about the future of the steel industry. We're talking here in very broad, ideological terms about Brexit, but here are the hard, practical realities of the impact of British industry from these debates that we are having. These are not casualty-free discussions, and the UK steel industry is already suffering from the laissez-faire attitude of the UK Government refusing to intervene to help it with research and development, refusing to intervene to help it with energy costs, refusing to give it a viable future, signing up to the procurement requirements that have been called for by both UK Steel and by the trade unions. And now, on top that lack of help for them, they're introducing an uncertainty in trading conditions that is the straw that has broken the camel's back in this case.

Deputy Minister, I've been an Assembly Member for less than a year and I've lost count of how many times we've had to discuss the loss of jobs in our communities in this Chamber. Schaeffler in Llanelli, Ford in Bridgend, Rehau in Ynys Môn, Quinn Radiators in Newport and now Orb in Newport again—in total, it's more than 3,000 jobs in the space of months. So, Deputy Minister, I'd like to ask what is going wrong with the Government's industrial strategy and what's your analysis of the reasons behind all of these closures in such a short space of time.

In relation to the Orb announcement, I'd like to ask what steps your Government will be taking to support the workers who are facing redundancy and if you'll offer assistance to them in acquiring redundancy payments in the case of involuntary redundancies. How will you help them to get new jobs, particularly if that requires retraining? And, finally, how do you intend to hold Tata to account for the broken promise that they made to workers of job security in exchange for pension cuts? One worker told Newyddion 9 that he felt he'd been lied to. So, have you held a meeting with Tata to reiterate this justified anger? I think everyone in this Chamber would appreciate answers to these questions and an explanation of how you're going to make sure that more of these job cuts aren't seen in the near future.

Well, I think a number of those questions have already been answered in previous answers, so I won't rehearse them. In terms of the general picture of the changes in the economy and the decline of some manufacturing firms—the Member mentioned Schaeffler in my own constituency and Ford—we are facing, in many ways, a perfect storm, and I do hate the overused metaphor, but the changes in the automotive sector are clearly having a massive impact as the demand for diesel falls. Allied with the trading uncertainty I mentioned just a moment ago, it's not giving businesses the confidence to invest, particularly the prospect of significantly higher tariffs from exporting from the UK. So, these joint impacts, which are beyond the control of the Welsh Government, are clearly having a huge effect. Despite that, until now, the employment figures have been encouraging, though, of course, patchily applied.

We are working hard to find new markets and also, for the future workforce, on Monday we'll be publishing the report by Professor Phil Brown into the future of automation and digitisation, and we'll be looking at how we can make sure the Welsh economy is best placed to take advantage of new industries as they emerge.

I have to say, it is, of course, incredibly disappointing to hear of yet more potential job losses in south Wales, and, clearly, my thoughts are with the families affected. We are, of course, aware of a number of businesses that are having difficulties along the M4 corridor—some of the businesses were mentioned in Delyth Jewell's question as she outlined some of the businesses affected. I wonder what contribution do you think that the Welsh Government's delay in addressing the congestion and transport issues along the M4 has had in terms of Tata's decision. And what steps are you taking, Deputy Minister, to ensure that we address the wider connectivity issues, which, I would say, are stifling businesses in a very important key region of Wales?

Well, I'd be interested in any evidence that Russell George has that those decisions he cited had any impact at all. I think he's kicking sand in our eyes here, trying to deflect from the blame of his own UK Government's failure to intervene to help the steel industry, creating huge uncertainty in our trading environment by openly promoting the prospect of a 'no deal' Brexit, which would increase tariffs by 25 per cent, and many in his party, including Jacob Rees-Mogg, talking optimistically about WTO, which we know would flood the market with Chinese steel. So, rather than casting around for ways to blame the Welsh Government for this—I don't think any of the workers will find any of this talk reassuring—we need to be focusing on how we can support them. [Interruption.] He's saying from a sedentary position that he was simply asking a question; he knows full well what he's doing. There is no evidence that any of the decisions he's cited have got anything to do with this at all. In fact, Tata have not mentioned them to us; Tata have not asked for any support from us. In contrast, they've asked for support from the UK Government for the steel sector deal and they've had diddly-squat in return.

Topical question 340 not asked.

Thank you very much.