The Tata Steel / Port Talbot Transition Board met for the fourth time on 27 March 2024. The Board received an update from Tata Steel UK on their decarbonisation project, including the recent closure of the coke ovens at Port Talbot and their voluntary redundancy proposal. The Board recognises the urgency at which we need to work.
The Board also discussed the structure and resource to support the Transition Board, with working groups being created to focus on outplacement and skills, supply chain, community relations and wellbeing, and communications. The process to access the £100 million funding for the Transition Board interventions was also addressed.
The statutory consultation on the decarbonisation project continues, so the Board will meet again towards the end of April for a more substantive discussion. This will also include the presentation of a proposed Local Economic Action Plan.
Rt Hon David TC Davies, Secretary of State for Wales chaired the Transition Board meeting. Vaughan Gething MS, First Minister of Wales attended and handed over the deputy chair role to Jeremy Miles MS, Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Welsh Language. Felicity Buchan MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities attended in the place of the other deputy chair, Rt Hon Michael Gove MP, Secretary of State for Levelling Up. Also, in attendance included Alan Mak MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State jointly in the Department for Business and Trade and the Cabinet Office. Other Board members at the meeting included Henrik Adam, Chair of Tata Steel UK; Rajesh Nair, Chief Executive Officer of Tata Steel UK; Cllr Steve Hunt, Leader of Neath Port Talbot Council; and David Rees, MS for Aberavon. Andrew Thomas, Director of Education, Leisure and Lifelong Learning attended in place of Karen Jones, CEO of Neath Port Talbot Council. Susanne Renkes, Councillor for Neath Port Talbot Council stood in Stephen Kinnock, MP for Aberavon. The Board was attended by its independent members, Katherine Bennett CBE, Anne Jessopp CBE and Sarah Williams-Gardner. Representatives from the trade unions also attended.
Statement from Chair of the Tata Steel / Port Talbot Transition Board and Secretary of State for Wales, David TC Davies:
It is vital that everything is done to support workers affected by Tata's decision to move to greener steelmaking.
The Transition Board I chair is carrying out this work and £100 million will be invested directly in skills, training and job creation as soon as the outcome of the ongoing consultation between Tata and its workforce is known and it is clear which workers are affected.
The UK Government has put in place one of the biggest support packages in history, with a £500 million grant as part of the £1.25 billion commitment by Tata to secure the future of the Welsh steel industry.
This record deal shows how much the UK Government values the Welsh steel industry and the people whose livelihoods depend on it. Without it, many thousands more jobs would have been lost at Port Talbot and in the wider supply chain.
