Questions Without Notice from the Party Leaders

Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:54 pm on 17 November 2020.

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Photo of Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford Labour 1:54, 17 November 2020

Well, Llywydd, while I'm happy to agree with the final point that the Member raised, I'm not prepared to follow the path down which he made his argument. It is very important that we do not talk about steel making in Port Talbot as it is carried out today as though it has already been lost. And the company, I know, is very keen indeed that we don't talk about it in that way because it has customers that it is supplying, it has order books that it needs to fulfil. So, I am committed to doing everything that the Welsh Government can do to help create a sustainable future for steel making in the United Kingdom and here in Wales.

That can only be secured through proper discussions between the UK Government and the company. It's a matter of great disappointment that that has not happened properly already, and may have contributed to the decisions that the company has made—the fact that they have not been able to secure an agreement through Project Birch, despite many months of trying to persuade the UK Government to do so. I don't think that any of us are in a position to know what the outcome of that will be, and I don't think that we should talk about it in a way that undermines the company's current ability to go on trading, to go on providing jobs in Port Talbot and to secure a future for that community.