Latest news with #LizSaville-Roberts
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'Double standards' to protect steel
Welsh politicians have accused the UK government of double standards over an emergency bill to protect steel in England. In a debate discussing a proposed British Steel law to save a Scunthorpe plant, Plaid Cymru and Liberal Democrat MPs criticised the government's plans, saying it had failed to do the same for Port Talbot. Liz Saville-Roberts, Plaid's Westminster leader, said: "Scunthorpe gets security, Port Talbot gets a pittance." The bill has since been approved by Parliament and UK ministers say the two steel works are in different situations, and Port Talbot is in a better position because of the Labour government. Steel nationalisation talks unfair on Wales, says Plaid Sheen steelworks drama bizarrely close to reality Mental health funding announced for steelworks town Traditional steel production in Wales came to an end in September, with the loss of some 2,800 jobs at Tata Steel's Port Talbot plant. The site is now transitioning to greener steel production with a new electric arc furnace, which requires fewer workers to run, expected to be in place from 2027. The closure of the blast furnaces was controversial in Wales, with Plaid politicians calling for nationalisation of the steel works. Speaking during the debate, Ms Saville-Roberts said Wales' first minister Eluned Morgan had dismissed her party's calls for nationalisation of Welsh steel as "pipe dreams". "This government did not intervene in Wales," she said. "Plaid Cymru believes Port Talbot could and should have received equal treatment alongside Scunthorpe. "The measures we are debating today would have been able to be used to save the blast furnaces at Tata Steel in Wales. "People in Wales will not forget today, today is a day of bitter, bitter disappointment for Port Talbot." Speaking to BBC Wales, Secretary of State for Wales Jo Stevens described the situation at the plant in Scunthorpe as being "very different" to that in Port Talbot. "It's the only site in the UK where virgin steel is made, and that's why it's a matter of national importance, strategic importance," said Ms Stevens. David Chadwick, spokesperson for the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said the closure of the blast furnaces had started a decline in economic activity south Wales that affected his constituency. He said: "It's rubbing salt in the wounds for the people of Port Talbot to now hear the government acknowledge the importance of primary steel production as a strategic national asset "Where was this urgency when Welsh steel communities were crying out for support, when Tata Steel announced over 2,800 job losses in Port Talbot last year, the largest steel works in the country, a key strategic asset, the manufacturing heart of south Wales." Mr Chadwick, MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe, whose grandfather worked in the blast furnaces, added: "The simple fact is this, the government did not recall parliament for Port Talbot. It did not recall parliament for Wales. "When crisis hits in Wales, it's tolerated. "When it hits elsewhere, it becomes a national emergency." In a post on X, Tom Giffard, Conservative MS for south west Wales, said steel workers in Port Talbot were promised a Labour government would change everything for the steel industry. "They then sold them down the river by changing nothing, and only taking action when jobs elsewhere were under threat. Labour simply doesn't care about south Wales," he added. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told the Commons the Port Talbot deal was negotiated by the previous Conservative government. "We were not able to reopen the deal, but we did negotiate a better deal," he said. Speaking on BBC Breakfast ahead of the debate, the industry minister, Sarah Jones, said: "When we came into government, there was a deal on the table with Tata Steel in Port Talbot. "We negotiated in 10 weeks a much better deal, but there was a private company willing to invest, who are now investing. "We have maintained 5,000 jobs on the site and there will be a future for that site with an electric arc furnace. "There is no such deal on the table at the moment [for Scunthorpe], that's what is different. "The other difference is that these are the last blast furnaces making primary steel that we have in this country, and also what is different of course is that the world is changing. "As we have seen with the Prime Minister's support for our defence industry in recent times, we need to ensure as a country we have sovereign capability to make steel, and that is what we are securing today."
The Independent
28-02-2025
- Business
- The Independent
People need ‘time to enjoy' saints' days, says Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader
People need 'the time to enjoy' St David's Day in Wales and St Piran's Day in Cornwall, Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader has said amid calls for bank holidays. In a debate to mark St David's Day, which takes place on Saturday, Liz Saville-Roberts told the Commons that not having a bank holiday for the event 'doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate' Wales. But she said people throughout the UK should celebrate national saints 'with vigour and enthusiasm'. Neither St David's Day on March 1 nor St Piran's Day on March 5 are bank holidays. St George's Day, celebrated in England on April 23, is also not a bank holiday. But people in Northern Ireland and Scotland receive bank holidays to mark patron saints' feast days – St Patrick's Day on March 17 and St Andrew's Day on November 30. Ms Saville Roberts, who wore a daffodil pinned to her top, said: 'It's a time of course to take pride in our culture, our communities, our language, each a rugged testament to our resilience as a nation. 'We are a nation of creativity and innovation. 'We all here know that Wales has the talent, the resources, the potential to be more than brilliant. 'But it's time to be more ambitious, it's time to up our game. 'While we may not yet have a St David's Day bank holiday, that doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate what makes our country so special.' Ben Maguire, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, intervened in her speech and asked: 'Would (Ms Saville Roberts) support my calls to make St Piran's Day – the national day of Cornwall – a bank holiday which is taking place on March 5?' Ms Saville Roberts, who is the MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd in North Wales, replied: 'Yes, we should be celebrating our regional saints and our national saints with vigour and enthusiasm, and make sure that people get every opportunity and the time to enjoy them.' She also called on MPs to 'acknowledge the challenges we face' and said the National Theatre Wales company had 'shut up shop', after its closure last December. 'Our arts and culture, so integral to our national identity, they are at present hanging in the balance,' Ms Saville Roberts said, adding that the NHS west of the border had been 'chronically mismanaged'. David Chadwick, the Liberal Democrats' Wales spokesman and the MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe, later endorsed calls for a bank holiday. He told MPs: 'Let us move boldly forward, together advocating for St David's Day to be recognised as a national holiday.' Labour MP for Cardiff West Alex Barros-Curtis had said the budget for Wales shows 'the power of partnership between two governments working together in the interests of the Welsh people'. He said: 'So why, therefore, Plaid Cymru will be joining the Conservatives to vote against this investment at the budget next week is beyond me.' Ms Saville Roberts intervened to say: 'He knows as well as I, in real terms, that this is not an increase, and also it is front-loaded for the Welsh budget. 'We know there is grief coming down the track with budgets in future, so it's hardly appropriate to be singing the praises of this budget, knowing what's on its way.' Mr Barros-Curtis replied: 'That is still inexcusable to me why Plaid Cymru would vote against an extra £1.5 billion in the budget next week and join the Tories in doing so, it seems an unfathomable reason for that.' In her contribution, Llinos Medi, Plaid Cymru MP for Ynys Mon, said: 'For decades, we have failed to address the fundamental problems that face Wales. 'We have never had an ambitious strategic economic plan. The case for a new radical and made-in-Wales approach to economic development is clear for all to see.' Welsh Secretary Jo Stevens described 'UK and Welsh governments working together and delivering for the people of Wales on economic growth, on clean energy, on water regulation, on health, and on plans for future rail improvement'. She told MPs that the Government had secured £80 million of support for the steel community in Port Talbot and supported the Welsh Government with £25 million to secure disused coal tips. 'The past six months have already seen billions of pounds of investment committed and hundreds of jobs created,' Ms Stevens added.
Yahoo
27-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
People need ‘time to enjoy' saint's days, says Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader
People need 'the time to enjoy' St David's Day in Wales and St Piran's Day in Cornwall, Plaid Cymru's Westminster leader has said amid calls for bank holidays. In a debate to mark St David's Day, which takes place on Saturday, Liz Saville-Roberts told the Commons that not having a bank holiday for the event 'doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate' Wales. But she said people throughout the UK should celebrate national saints 'with vigour and enthusiasm'. Neither St David's Day on March 1 nor St Piran's Day on March 5 are bank holidays. St George's Day, celebrated in England on April 23, is also not a bank holiday. But people in Northern Ireland and Scotland receive bank holidays to mark patron saints' feast days – St Patrick's Day on March 17 and St Andrew's Day on November 30. Ms Saville-Roberts, who wore a daffodil pinned to her top, said: 'It's a time of course to take pride in our culture, our communities, our language, each a rugged testament to our resilience as a nation. 'We are a nation of creativity and innovation. 'We all here know that Wales has the talent, the resources, the potential to be more than brilliant. 'But it's time to be more ambitious, it's time to up our game. 'While we may not yet have a St David's Day bank holiday, that doesn't stop us from coming together to celebrate what makes our country so special.' Ben Maguire, the Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, intervened in her speech and asked: 'Would (Ms Saville-Roberts) support my calls to make St Piran's Day – the national day of Cornwall – a bank holiday which is taking place on March 5?' Ms Saville Roberts, who is the MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd in North Wales, replied: 'Yes, we should be celebrating our regional saints and our national saints with vigour and enthusiasm, and make sure that people get every opportunity and the time to enjoy them.' She also called on MPs to 'acknowledge the challenges we face' and said the National Theatre Wales company had 'shut up shop', after its closure last December. 'Our arts and culture, so integral to our national identity, they are at present hanging in the balance,' Ms Saville-Roberts said, adding that the NHS west of the border had been 'chronically mismanaged'.
