Political blame game intensifies as Port Talbot steelworkers face uncertain future

Labour faced accusations of giving up the fight and making false promises after more than 100 years of traditional steel production came to an end in Port Talbot.

Rhun ap Iorwerth pointed to pre-election promises from prime minister Keir Starmer to fight for every single job at Tata Steel and the future of Welsh steelmaking.

During first minister’s questions on October 1, the day after the closure of blast furnace four, the Plaid Cymru leader asked: “Can the first minister tell us why Labour gave up that fight?”

Eluned Morgan argued Labour was able to negotiate a better deal than the Tories, with improved redundancy and skills packages as well as retention for training.

The first minister said: “There has been an assurance that the £500m that is going to be invested by the UK Government will be clawed back if jobs are not delivered.

“None of that was in the agreement that was negotiated by the Conservatives.”

‘Certainty’

Up to 2,800 jobs are expected to be lost as part of the transition to cleaner, cheaper electric arc furnaces at the UK’s largest steelworks.

In a statement on the same day, Rebecca Evans said the deal between the UK Government and Tata Steel “at least brings certainty to the future and next steps”.

Wales’ new economy secretary, who was appointed in September, told the Senedd the “enhanced” deal includes 100 jobs as part of a furlough-type scheme paid for by Tata.

She stated about £25m has been invested in employment programmes such as ReAct+ and Communities for Work+, with more than 700 workers accessing upskilling schemes.

Pledging to support supply chain businesses, she explained that Business Wales has launched a fund as part of the £80m committed to transition by the UK Government.

“The deal builds a bridge to a competitive and sustainable future for Welsh steel,” she said.

‘False promises’

But the Conservatives’ Tom Giffard said many workers will have voted Labour in July’s general election due to the promises made by the party.

He said claims the agreement is substantially different to the one his party proposed “stretch past the point of credibility”, with BBC Wales describing the deals as “virtually identical”.

He told the chamber or Siambr: “Jubilation from the Labour party about minor changes in the smallprint will be of little comfort in homes where workers face the reality of losing their jobs.

“It’s also not what they were sold by a Labour party and a prime minister who on so many fronts said one thing before the election, only to do the exact opposite.”

Mr Giffard, who represents South Wales West, urged Labour to apologise for false promises.

‘No plan’

Luke Fletcher, Plaid Cymru’s shadow economy secretary, said the Conservatives and Labour could have prevented the loss of primary steelmaking in Wales.

He told the Senedd: “Members on Labour benches … repeatedly told us that they had a plan to save Welsh steel – that all we had to do was sit tight and wait for Keir Starmer. And I held out hope … but, in the end, Labour had no plan.”

Mr Fletcher accused senior Labour politicians of posturing for the past year, criticising Welsh and UK ministers’ “refusal” to explore all options.

He told the Siambr: “What was needed was political will and political courage from our leaders and that’s exactly what we never got.”

Mr Fletcher added: “We were told to wait and wait and wait – until it was too late. I’m not sure the workers in Port Talbot, their families or the wider community will forgive us for what is happening this week – and I can’t blame them.”

‘Point scoring’

David Rees, who represents Aberavon and chairs the Senedd’s cross-party group on steel, stressed that Tata would not budge on closing the blast furnace.

“We now need to look ahead,” he said. “The people of Port Talbot don’t want political point scoring in this chamber today. They want to know what we are going to do to support them.”

The Labour MS warned that moving to electric arc furnaces will take four or five years as he called for support to ensure workers, families and communities survive the interim.

Plaid Cymru’s Sioned Williams said she now feels nauseous looking at Port Talbot’s skyline, knowing the hopes of thousands have been extinguished in an “unjust” transition.

Labour’s Mike Hedges, a former steelworker, who worked in Port Talbot, said: “I find it’s a very sad week. We’ve seen the end of iron and steel making in Wales.”

By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter