I questioned the Minister for Industry and Economic Security on the conditions around the £5oomillion given to Tata Steel here in Port Talbot.

Question:
I have repeatedly asked Ministers whether any strings were attached to the £500 million of taxpayers’ money that was given to Tata Steel, particularly with regard to job guarantees. I have not had a straight answer, so I will try again today. Can the Secretary of State please confirm whether any conditionality was attached to the £500 million, or did the Government simply buy Tata Steel’s bluff about closure, and give it £500 million so that we could make 2,800 people redundant?

Answer:
The hon. Gentleman attends the transition board meetings, so he knows that his question is not really relevant to what he is trying to get to the bottom of. We provided £500 million to ensure that steel making continues in Port Talbot. Tata made it clear that it was uneconomic and unsustainable to continue with steel making, so the support that we have given will ensure that north of 5,000 jobs will continue in Port Talbot, and it will support supply chains. On top of that, £100 million has been provided to the transition board, so that its members, including the hon. Gentleman, the unions and all the local representatives, can ensure that local people who need to go through transition get the support that they need. Without that support, there would not be any future steel making at Port Talbot.