Tata Steel

Part of 3. Topical Questions – in the Senedd at 3:07 pm on 4 December 2019.

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Photo of Suzy Davies Suzy Davies Conservative 3:07, 4 December 2019

Thank you for those answers, Minister. I wonder if I can just sort of push you a little bit further on some of the questions you had from David Rees. I just want to start with your last comments though, about March 2021 being the end date for this transformation programme. It's very convenient, isn't it, that that's basically at the end of the five-year guarantee on jobs that we've been given by Tata, and potentially the end of the taskforce and the £60 million offer that you've made to Tata as well? I'm wondering whether you've had any indication from Tata themselves that one of the reasons perhaps they're not doing this more quickly is because of the offer that Welsh Government has made to them over the years, or whether it's something slightly more cynical than that, that they're getting the best out of us that they can before they actually just cut and run.

I'd be grateful as well if you could give us some indication of exactly how much you've known and at what times during the last three weeks or so. As you know, I've written to you a few times and been told, 'Well, you know, the information is coming, but we don't know what.' I think, to be fair, I've had something from you today that says that further information will be available in February 2020 from Tata. 

But, I'll go back to David Rees's questions about where the analysis of what types of jobs are going and where is in all this, because it's easy enough to make these announcements, but without telling us how they concluded which types of jobs are to go, then we should be asking why you're making these announcements at all. Because if you're talking about—. I think you said employment costs were the reason for the announcement being made. We should have some idea which jobs they're actually talking about. And I'm very conscious of course that, back in 2016, some of the jobs that went in the big set of losses there were themselves white-collar workers. There probably aren't that many left in Port Talbot Tata. 

Then finally, I just wanted to ask you, it's not so long ago you told us that you were going to meet Tata about your climate emergency announcement. Have you had any indication from Tata at all whether that has influenced what is likely to be some bad news for Wales? And if they have given you an indication of whether that was a factor, what have you done in order to reassure Tata that that shouldn't be something that they take into account in their commitment to Wales in the future? Thank you.