The chancellor has defended the government’s £500m steel industry subsidy, with thousands of jobs set to be lost at Britain’s biggest steelworks.
When asked why the government is spending money on jobs that are going to be scrapped, Rachel Reeves said the steel industry was “incredibly important” to the UK economy.
The government, Ms Reeves said, was working with businesses and unions to transition to green steel while also preserving jobs.
Her comments come ahead of a House of Commons announcement on the fate of Wales’ Port Talbot steel works.
As many as 2,800 jobs are to be lost despite the previous government issuing £500m of funding. In return, the company would invest £750m.
Sky News revealed on Monday that Jonathan Reynolds, the business secretary, wants to make a statement to parliament on Wednesday about the Tata Steel deal after Prime Minister’s Questions.
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Ministers are racing to finalise a £1.25bn deal amid fading hopes of a similarly consensual agreement with the industry’s second-largest player.
Mr Reynolds has said “a better deal” was possible than the one negotiated by the last government.
Industry sources told Sky News redundancy terms and retraining programmes for affected workers were among the final points being negotiated between Tata Steel and the government.