Hugh Robertson
Opposition day debate on government support for Mr Mittal and the domestic steel industry
As a representative of the steel constituency of Aberavon can I take this opportunity at the outset of thanking my Rt Hon friend, the Secretary of State for Wales, the Member for Torfaen, also a great steel constituency: the Secretary of State along with Labour's First Minister in the Welsh Assembly have made great efforts in support of the steel industry in Wales this last year – arguably the most difficult year for the industry since the war.
Also at the outset of my contribution I wish to welcome the Government's commitment to the referral of the US to the World Trade Organisation if it introduces steel tariffs. Indeed this should be welcomed by all sides of the House. We should also welcome the commitment of my Rt Hon friend the Secretary of State for Industry's support of the introduction of safeguards that steel currently sent to the US by non EU countries will not be dumped in the EU.
And further to all that, this House should demand that Corus in the US – Corus Tuscaloosa - should unequivocally oppose US tariffs.
Whilst my constituency did not bear the job losses experienced elsewhere in Wales, we nonetheless had our own terrible tribulations with the tragedy on the 8th November 2001. The explosion at the number 5 blast furnace in Port Talbot resulted in the loss of 3 lives. Thankfully, all the injured men have now been discharged from Morriston Hospital, thanks to the dedication and skills of the staff in the Burns Unit.
This Opposition Day Debate affords those of us from steel and former steel communities the opportunity to review the very considerable efforts which have been made in the last year by the Labour Government and the Labour led Assembly in Wales in partnership with very many bodies including in particular my own union the Iron and Steel Trades Confederation – ISTC the community union. We have responded to the very great challenges facing the industry, locally, nationally and globally in a responsible and constructive way.
The TUC has recently called for greater support for manufacturing through a stronger commitment to social partnerships and regional development agencies. I believe these strategies already underpin our current Government policies.
Whilst the pretext for this debate, on the face of it, is about one company and one political donation, we believe on this side of the House that the real issues facing the industry, the workforce and our communities are being addressed by the Labour Government in real, tangible and constructive ways.
As secretary of the newly formed All Party Parliamentary Group on Steel I am only too well aware of the efforts made by our Labour Government here in Westminster, the Labour led Welsh Assembly, the many Labour Authorities in Wales and throughout the United Kingdom, and also the very many agencies and private sector companies which have worked together in social partnerships to rebuild and diversify our local economies.
In my own constituency, we have the welcome news from Corus of the £75 million investment in rebuilding the number 5 blast furnace.
We also have the announcement by the Welsh Assembly to establish an Advanced Technology Centre at Port Talbot, which will bring together Government Agencies and the very best applied research in our Welsh Universities to drive forward innovation in the industry.
We have the continuing very good progress of the new Baglan Energy Park, again through public and private social partnerships, notably GE, the Welsh Development Agency and Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council – a Labour Authority which has been quite outstanding in its efforts to diversify the local economy.
And next Monday we launch our own Afan Community Credit Union with strong support from ISTC and the Welsh Assembly – yet another example of how we are getting on with the job of rebuilding and serving our steel communities.
Across Wales great efforts have been made by the main steel union, ISTC, and all the other unions in the industry, Steel Partnership Training, UK Steel Enterprises and Steel Action. All these bodies have placed great emphasis on the acquisition of new skills and new learning opportunities.
I am proud to say that one such initiative, the newly formed Port Talbot Union Academy links into the new Local Community Learning Network in my constituency, established through Objective 1 funding. This is very much in the spirit of the Welsh Assembly's paving document “The Learning Country”.
I began by saying, Mr. Speaker, that too many opposition politicians tend to undervalue the efforts and achievements over the last year.
Who on the Opposition benches applauds my Honourable friend, the Member for Blaenau Gwent who has consistently championed the steelworkers of Ebbw Vale? In the wake of the redundancy announcement last year, through his efforts and the efforts of Lord Brookman of Ebbw Vale, as well as the efforts of the local Labour Assembly Member, Peter Law, and the Labour Authority, we have the reopening of the passenger train service to Ebbw Vale and the new UK Steel Enterprise Innovation Centre. This new centre will be launched at Victoria, at a cost of £3 million to assist local startup enterprises.
It is clear that steel and manufacturing are still major players in the Welsh economy. Manufacturing accounts for over 18 per cent of employment in Wales. Corus has made it clear to our Government that Wales is a place where world class steel production can take place and says it is committed to achieving that.
Much has been done in the last year and deserves praise. The Prime Minister and other Ministers supported the attempted ISTC workers buy-out at Llanwern last year. The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, the Foreign Office and the Prime Minister have all been unequivocal in their condemnation of possible US tariffs on British steel exports.
The possible announcement on the 6th March 2002, tomorrow, of such tariffs will add to the existing difficulties faced by large companies such as Corus. They have already identified issues relating to tax, transport, and energy costs, which they consider to be challenges for them and the issue of a US tariff would only add to these problems.
It would be very appropriate for this debate to focus on these challenging issues rather than the irrelevance of trying to link political donations to the Government's policies. As internationalists, supporters of European Enlargement and the modernization of the global steel industry we should be proud of what our Government is doing in Westminster and Cardiff.
As a member representing a large steel community and Secretary of the All Party Group on Steel, I hope and trust my Right Honorable friend, The Secretary of State for Wales will convey to both the Prime Minister and to Mr Mittal, our expectations that every effort continues to be made to prevent such tariffs being introduced. This should be done in the spirit of extending and strengthening our Government's commitment to developing corporate social responsibility locally, nationally, and internationally.
Our Government has pioneered the concept of corporate social responsibility and I would like to take this opportunity of urging all steel and other manufacturing companies whether they be Corus, Allied Steel and Wire or Mr. Mittal's LNM Holdings, to consider very carefully their corporate social responsibilities and their commitment to safeguarding and sustaining the UK Steel Industry.
I arranged for the Steel Group to write to Mr Mittal last week urging him to support the aims of our group, in particular our desire to ensure a fair deal for the UK steel industry and to aid the regeneration of steel and former steel communities.
The best way to achieve this is for Mr Mittal and indeed all of us to oppose these US tariffs.
I think we would all concur with the words of the First Minister of the Welsh Assembly , Rhodri Morgan AM, earlier this year when he said
“The new blast furnace which will be constructed at Port Talbot will not only be a memorial to those who lost their lives but also a symbol of the endurance of an industry vital to Wales and its continuing contribution in the years ahead to this country and the communities that serve it”.
“There are no quick fixes to problems as entrenched as those of our long neglected industrial communities. I believe [he concluded] that the programme set out [by the Welsh Assembly] is a new start and the strongest possible expression of faith in the future of these communities”.
Mr Speaker, modern Wales was built on and built by these great steel communities. Historians have written that the building of Margam Steel Works in my constituency was a symbol of Labour's commitment to the reviving of South Wales in the post-war period. Margam in its day was of course the greatest steelworks in Britain and the historian, Dr John Davies saw its creation as one of the three great political landmarks of post-war Wales.
I find it encouraging and indeed prophetic today that the great and successful rugby sides enjoying a revival this year are from the great steel towns of South Wales – Aberavon, Newport, Pontypool and Ebbw Vale.
Unlike Honorable Members on the opposition benches, we can speak legitimately for steel communities and former steel communities in Wales and throughout the United Kingdom. We are proud of what our party in Government is doing to address the serious challenges facing our industry and our communities .
Our challenges today are as great as they were in 1945 when Labour rebuilt the Welsh and British economies. We take our challenges as seriously today as in 1945.
That is why Labour members took the initiative to establish the new All Party Parliamentary Group on Steel and I urge all members of this House, of whatever party, to assist us in our objectives of ensuring a fair deal for the UK Steel industry and to assist in the regeneration of steel communities and former steel communities in Wales and throughout the United Kingdom.
This year steelworkers in Port Talbot in my constituency celebrate a Centenary of steel making. The industry continues to be a very significant contributor to the economic, social, and cultural fabric of not only the town but also the whole region.
It is my view and belief that Labour's policies assist, even in these most difficult times, in sustaining our steel communities and former steel communities and also assist those who wish to develop new initiatives towards a more diverse local economy.
I end with the words of David Ferris, the Chair of the multi-unions at Port Talbot Steelworks. We would all do well to listen to and show some respect for the steel unions. I only wish some parties had done so after the explosion in Port Talbot. David Ferris said this to me yesterday:
‘What Labour is doing today is to be welcomed by all of us : it is comparable with our achievements after 1945'.
