MS, First Minister: I met
with the Prime Minister last week, and I pressed what is now the
urgent need for the UK Government to act on policy developments
that will support our steel industry and steel workers here in
Wales.
As a foundation industry, steel enables economically important
sectors such as construction and manufacturing. It is essential
to infrastructure projects for buildings, transport, utilities
and communication systems, as well as for many of our consumer
products. Wales is home to a significant proportion of the
UK's steel capability, and we continue to take every opportunity
to advocate strongly for the sector and its future. With the
transition of Tata Steel to electric arc steelmaking firmly
underway and ongoing development of the 7 Steel plant, it is
critical that the sector and its supply chains have a supportive
operating environment.
The challenges facing the UK steel sector are varied. They
include energy prices, global overcapacity, and trade barriers
and tariffs. We know that the current uncertainty regarding trade
measures is causing considerable anxiety for the workforce in our
manufacturers and supply chains. , Cabinet Secretary for
Economy, Energy and Planning, heard firsthand from the steel
unions last week about their concerns for the sector.
EU trade measures have the potential to have drastic consequences
for the Welsh steel sector at a time when it is already under
immense trading pressure due to US tariffs and global
overcapacity. The EU is our closest and strongest trading partner
on steel, and we have been very clear with the UK Government that
we urgently need to see it make a strong case for the EU to
preserve our existing arrangements, especially at a time when our
sector is transitioning to net zero.
We have been clear that Wales and the UK cannot be left in a
situation where all our major partners are implementing solutions
to protect their steel sector, only to leave us open to potential
dumping. The Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning
and I have stressed this point to UK Government on multiple
occasions.
We have also pressed the critical need for the UK to have robust
steel measures to replace the UK steel safeguards post June
2026. Robust steel measures are vital to the preservation
of the steel industry in Wales and the UK, especially when
considering the global overcapacity of steel, and increased steel
tariffs driven primarily by US tariffs on the sector. Despite the
challenges, the US continues to be an important market for Welsh
steel, and we continue to work with the UK government to find a
solution with the US that supports our steel sector. We
understand that the recent US Supreme Court ruling has no bearing
on steel and therefore we need the UK government to agree and
implement the tariff free quota for UK steel into the US as
agreed under the UK-US economic prosperity deal, whilst
considering the unique transitioning needs of the Welsh steel
sector.
More broadly we understand that the sector wants to see a truly
competitive electricity pricing structure, greater leverage for
using UK steel through public procurement, robust trade remedies
and protection against carbon leakage.
We are supporting the sector by working with the UK Government,
steel companies, and trade unions. We have a seat on the UK Steel
Council, and we have been actively contributing to the
development of the proposed UK Steel Strategy that will take
account of the various external and policy issues facing the
sector as well as identifying areas for investment.
The proposed UK Government Steel Strategy is an important piece
of work investigating the policy issues that our domestic steel
sector continues to face, as well as researching the best
opportunities for capital investment. The steel industry
has identified several priorities that they wish to see in the
Strategy needed to support sustainable steelmaking. These include
ongoing support to decarbonise, energy costs, the supply of
quality scrap steel, the public procurement of steel and of
course matters affecting steel trade.
It is important that the Steel Strategy not only meets the needs
of today but also of tomorrow - and research and development is
critical to ensuring that our sector remains sustainable and
forward thinking. We have been working with the UK Government to
press the importance of these matters for the sector.
We understand that the UK Steel Strategy is now due to be
published in March. The Welsh Government is calling for the
strategy to be afforded the absolute top priority that it
deserves, and that publication is made as a matter of utmost
urgency. Industry needs clarity, and our steel workforce needs
transparency and confidence.
