Tata Steel

Part of 3. Topical Questions – in the Senedd at 3:09 pm on 4 December 2019.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 3:09, 4 December 2019

Can I thank Suzy Davies for her questions? The declaration of a climate emergency has not been a factor in their decision making. Tata themselves recognise that they need to respond to the climate emergency, that they need to make savings in terms of energy costs, and that they need to ensure that they're decarbonising their footprint. We've been working with them, as the Member is aware, on the offer of £8 million of investment in Port Talbot's power plant and also on £666,000 for research and development into new product development. Now, we were making very good progress in these talks in terms of making sure that the conditions were adequate, particularly those concerning the protection of jobs. We were, in turn, very close to reaching an agreement on conditions earlier this year. But, since then, we know what's happened.

There have been a number of announcements, including the collapse of the proposed joint venture with Thyssenkrupp; there's the proposed closure of Orb and now the latest announcement. That has held up the finalisation of an agreement on conditions, but we will not release that money until we are confident that it offers value for money, that investment, and that it will lead to jobs being protected for a good number of years. We are absolutely determined to use our financial resource to guarantee jobs are protected and that investment is protected in Welsh sites.

The Member asks about the time frame for analysing the functions that could be lost as a consequence of the announcement. The detail that we have from Tata is simply that they will be looking at two thirds of the jobs coming from management and office-based roles. We will be meeting with them again very soon, and officials are in very regular contact, in an effort to get a better assessment of precisely what roles could be lost, so that we can begin the process of building support systems for the people most likely to lose their employment.

In terms of the long-term future of Tata, it's been repeatedly said to me by Tata that these measures, the transformation programme, are designed to ensure the long-term survivability of the steel sector, or rather the Tata operations within the steel sector in the UK, and that it will release investment for those sites in Wales and across the border as well. I have no reason not to believe that this is absolutely true. I believe that Tata are acting in good faith when they assure me that this is about investing in the future of those facilities. Nonetheless, I would urge Tata to ensure that they consult meaningfully and engage properly with trade unions in ensuring that every bit of support that can be offered to employees is provided.