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| Tata to announce sale of UK steel business | |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| Tata Steel is to announce that it plans to sell its entire UK steel operation including the Port Talbot plant, according to a local MP and unions, in a move that could put thousands of jobs in the UK at risk. | |
| Related: Port Talbot – heart of the storm battering Britain's steel industry | |
| The board of Tata, the owner of the Welsh plant, met in Mumbai on Tuesday to decide the future of Port Talbot, the country’s biggest steelworks. The news will affect other Tata plants including Rotherham, Corby and Shotton. | |
| About 4,000 people are employed at Port Talbot but thousands more jobs rely on the steelworks. However, the plant and the division of which it is a part are losing more than £1m a day and Tata is under pressure in India to cut its losses on UK steel so that it can focus on the domestic market. | |
| Tata blames cheap imports of Chinese steel and high energy costs for threatening the future of its UK steelmaking. Port Talbot has already had to bear the brunt of 1,000 job losses announced in January. | Tata blames cheap imports of Chinese steel and high energy costs for threatening the future of its UK steelmaking. Port Talbot has already had to bear the brunt of 1,000 job losses announced in January. |
| The MP for Aberavon, Stephen Kinnock, who was in Mumbai to lobby the Tata board, was briefed after the meeting by Tata’s chief financial officer. | The MP for Aberavon, Stephen Kinnock, who was in Mumbai to lobby the Tata board, was briefed after the meeting by Tata’s chief financial officer. |
| Kinnock told the South Wales Evening Post: “We will not allow the closure of Port Talbot steelworks. One way or another we will continue to make steel in Port Talbot but it looks like Tata [does] not back the plan. We will work with Tata and the UK government to help find a buyer for the plant.” | |
| The business minister, Anna Soubry, said earlier that the government was determined to ensure Port Talbot continues to make steel. Speaking on the BBC’s Today programme, Soubry said: “I don’t think you should underestimate the determination of this prime minister, and this government, to make sure that we continue not just to roll steel at Port Talbot, actually to make it there and at Scunthorpe as well. That is our determination.” | |
| Soubry sought to blame Vince Cable, who was business secretary under the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government, for failing to do enough to protect the Port Talbot plant. “I think Vince could have done more: sorry, but that is my view,” she said. “When I was appointed the prime minister specially said to me ‘We have some very real problems in our steel industry and I want you to devote a large amount of your time to solving those problems as much as you can’.” | |
| Soubry suggested that the government was poised to take action if the plant looked set to be closed. “We are looking at all manner of options that may or may not be available to us as a government,” she said. | Soubry suggested that the government was poised to take action if the plant looked set to be closed. “We are looking at all manner of options that may or may not be available to us as a government,” she said. |
| A crisis has engulfed much of the British steel industry in the past 12 months, with the Redcar steel plant, owned by Thai company SSI, closing late last year with the loss of 1,700 jobs. | A crisis has engulfed much of the British steel industry in the past 12 months, with the Redcar steel plant, owned by Thai company SSI, closing late last year with the loss of 1,700 jobs. |
| A spokeswoman for David Cameron conceded that no British minister was in Mumbai to monitor the progress of Tuesday’s board meeting, as it emerged that the business secretary, Sajid Javid, was preparing to fly to Australia on Tuesday, with the future of the Port Talbot plant still hanging in the balance. | A spokeswoman for David Cameron conceded that no British minister was in Mumbai to monitor the progress of Tuesday’s board meeting, as it emerged that the business secretary, Sajid Javid, was preparing to fly to Australia on Tuesday, with the future of the Port Talbot plant still hanging in the balance. |
| Related: Tata Scottish steel works rescued by Liberty House | |
| “We are working very closely with the industry to look at ways we can help to deliver a long-term, sustainable future,” the spokeswoman said. “There are already a number of steps that we have taken for the steel industry more broadly. We stand ready to work with Tata.” | “We are working very closely with the industry to look at ways we can help to deliver a long-term, sustainable future,” the spokeswoman said. “There are already a number of steps that we have taken for the steel industry more broadly. We stand ready to work with Tata.” |
| Officials from the Community trade union, which represents steelworkers, had reported earlier that they had “constructive” talks with senior company representatives in Mumbai. | |
| More than 35,000 people have signed an open letter to Tata Steel’s chairman, Cyrus Mistry, in support of UK steelworkers. | More than 35,000 people have signed an open letter to Tata Steel’s chairman, Cyrus Mistry, in support of UK steelworkers. |
| Angela Eagle, the shadow business secretary, said: “The steel industry is of vital strategic importance to the economy, but it is hanging by the thinnest of threads. Against the backdrop of challenging global conditions for the steel sector, it is crucial that the government is prepared to act, or we risk losing yet more high-skilled jobs and potentially an entire industry which is vital to our future prosperity. | |
| “Steel bosses, workers and entire communities are now looking to the government to stand ready to do all it can to play its part in safeguarding the future of steelmaking in Britain.” | “Steel bosses, workers and entire communities are now looking to the government to stand ready to do all it can to play its part in safeguarding the future of steelmaking in Britain.” |
| This is a breaking news story, please check back for further updates | This is a breaking news story, please check back for further updates |