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MP says steelworkers ‘disgracefully treated’ under Tata deal

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A LIB DEM MP has criticised the UK Labour Government over its handling of the Tata Steel transition deal, claiming workers in Port Talbot have been let down.

David Chadwick, MP for Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe, raised concerns in Parliament on Tuesday (Apr 29), questioning why steelworkers in Wales had not received the same level of support as those in Scunthorpe.

Since Tata announced nearly 3,000 redundancies last year, workers in Port Talbot have reported a range of issues with the redundancy and retraining arrangements.

Among the concerns raised by Mr Chadwick were:

  • Employees with over 25 years of service not having their full service recognised.
  • Workers on job-share contracts having redundancy calculated on part-time hours despite decades of full-time work.
  • Requests to return to full-time work being denied.
  • A lack of clear finishing dates, preventing new job offers from being accepted without losing redundancy pay.
  • Some workers leaving early for new jobs and losing redundancy payouts, saving Tata millions.

Mr Chadwick also cited concerns with the take-up of retraining schemes. In February, whistleblowers told Nation.Cymru that just three former Tata employees had accessed the Employment and Skills Flexible Fund, warning that remaining in retraining for over a month could result in loss of the enhanced redundancy package.

The enhanced package offered 2.8 weeks’ pay per year of service up to 25 years, with a minimum payout of £15,000 and a potential £5,000 ex gratia payment. The standard package was 2.1 weeks per year.

In Parliament, Mr Chadwick said that Labour had claimed the Port Talbot deal was better than the Conservative deal it replaced, but that the experience of many workers suggested otherwise.

Commenting, Mr Chadwick said:

“Since this Labour Government announced it was acting to save jobs in Scunthorpe, but not Port Talbot, Labour has claimed it secured a good deal for workers losing their jobs at Tata — yet conversations I’ve had with workers directly contradict this.

“With those workers having served over 25 years not having that service recognised, and only a handful of people accessing retraining courses due to the threat of receiving a worse redundancy package, this does not sound like a good deal.

“The way workers and the wider community in Port Talbot have been treated by this new Labour Government and the previous Conservative Government has been disgraceful.

“The Welsh Liberal Democrats will continue to highlight their failures and fight for immediate investments to replace the jobs that have been lost as a result of this mismanagement.”

UK Government response

A UK Government spokesperson told The Pembrokeshire Herald:

“We acted decisively to ensure that steelmaking would continue in Port Talbot and we have done so again to protect the industry in Scunthorpe, but the circumstances between the two cases are very different.

“The agreement with Tata Steel to build an electric arc furnace and Tata’s decision to shut down the blast furnaces and coke ovens in Port Talbot were all made in 2024 under the previous government.

“In just a few weeks we negotiated an improved deal with Tata which preserved 5,000 jobs, ensured there would be no immediate compulsory redundancies, confirmed a £500 million grant for future steelmaking in Port Talbot, and secured investment opportunities for the local area.

“We also offered support for every single worker and supply chain business via our £80 million Port Talbot Transition Board. More than £50 million has already been announced, much of it on retraining and reskilling of workers, and the rest will follow in the coming months.

“In contrast, Jingye, British Steel’s owner in Scunthorpe, rejected our offer of financial support meaning we had to legislate to ensure the continued safe operation of the blast furnaces.

“Our ongoing support for British steelmaking ensures that steel communities like Port Talbot and Scunthorpe have a bright future.”

The UK Government said that its skills scheme has procured 1,400 training courses so far for workers affected by the transition at Tata Steel in Port Talbot. Tata Steel is also running a separate retraining programme.

Crime

Woman stabbed partner in Haverfordwest before handing herself in

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A WOMAN who stabbed her partner during a drug-fuelled episode walked straight into Haverfordwest Police Station and told officers what she had done, Swansea Crown Court has heard.

Amy Woolston, 22, of Dartmouth Street in Milford Haven, arrived at the station at around 8:00pm on June 13 and said: “I stabbed my ex-partner earlier… he’s alright and he let me walk off,” prosecutor Tom Scapens told the court.

The pair had taken acid together earlier in the day, and Woolston claimed she believed she could feel “stab marks in her back” before the incident.

Police find victim with four wounds

Officers went to the victim’s home to check on him. He was not there at first, but returned shortly afterwards. He appeared sober and told police: “Just a couple of things,” before pointing to injuries on his back.

He had three stab or puncture wounds to his back and another to his bicep.

The victim said that when he arrived home from the shop, Woolston was acting “a bit shifty”. After asking if she was alright, she grabbed something from the windowsill — described as either a knife or a shard of glass — and stabbed him.

He told officers he had “had worse from her before”, did not support a prosecution, and refused to go to hospital.

Defendant has long history of violence

Woolston pleaded guilty to unlawful wounding. The court heard she had amassed 20 previous convictions from 10 court appearances, including assaults, battery, and offences against emergency workers.

Defending, Dyfed Thomas said Woolston had longstanding mental health problems and had been off medication prescribed for paranoid schizophrenia at the time.
“She’s had a difficult upbringing,” he added, saying she was remorseful and now compliant with treatment.

Woolston was jailed for 12 months, but the court heard she has already served the equivalent time on remand and will be released imminently on a 12-month licence.

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BBC apologises to Herald’s editor for inaccurate story

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THE BBC has issued a formal apology and amended a six-year-old article written by BBC Wales Business Correspondent Huw Thomas after its Executive Complaints Unit ruled that the original headline and wording gave an “incorrect impression” that Herald editor Tom Sinclair was personally liable for tens of thousands of pounds in debt.

The 2019 report, originally headlined “Herald newspaper editor Tom Sinclair has £70,000 debts”, has now been changed.

The ECU found: “The wording of the article and its headline could have led readers to form the incorrect impression that the debt was Mr Sinclair’s personal responsibility… In that respect the article failed to meet the BBC’s standards of due accuracy.”

Mr Sinclair said: “I’m grateful to the ECU for the apology and for correcting the personal-liability impression that caused real harm for six years. However, the article still links the debts to ‘the group which publishes The Herald’ when in fact they related to printing companies that were dissolved two years before the Herald was founded in 2013. I have asked the BBC to add that final clarification so the record is completely accurate.”

A formal apology and correction of this kind from the BBC is extremely rare, especially for a story more than six years old. 

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Business

First wind turbine components arrive as LNG project moves ahead

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THE FIRST ship carrying major components for Dragon LNG’s new onshore wind turbines
docked at Pembroke Port yesterday afternoon last week, marking the start of physical
deliveries for the multi-million-pound renewable energy project.

The Maltese-registered general cargo vessel Peak Bergen berthed at Pembroke Dock on
shortly after 4pm on Wednesday 26th November, bringing tower sections and other heavy
components for the three Enercon turbines that will eventually stand on land adjacent to the
existing gas terminal at Waterston.

A second vessel, the Irish-flagged Wilson Flex IV, has arrived in Pembroke Port today is
due to arrive in the early hours of this morning (Thursday) carrying the giant rotor blades.
The deliveries follow a successful trial convoy on 25 November, when police-escorted low-
loader trailers carried dummy loads along the planned route from the port through
Pembroke, past Waterloo roundabout and up the A477 to the Dragon LNG site.

Dragon LNG’s Community and Social Performance Officer, Lynette Round, confirmed the
latest movements in emails to the Herald.

“The Peak Bergen arrived last week yesterday with the first components,” she said. “We are
expecting another delivery tomorrow (Thursday) onboard the Wilson Flex IV. This will be
blades and is currently showing an ETA of approximately 03:30.”

The £14.3 million project, approved by Welsh Ministers last year, will see three turbines with
a combined capacity of up to 13.5 MW erected on company-owned land next to the LNG
terminal. Once operational – expected in late 2026 – they will generate enough electricity to
power the entire site, significantly reducing its carbon footprint.

Port of Milford Haven shipping movements showed the Peak Bergen approaching the Haven
throughout Wednesday morning before finally tying up at the cargo berth in Pembroke Dock.

Cranes began unloading operations yesterday evening.

The Weather conditions are currently were favourable for this morning’s the arrival of
the Wilson Flex IV, which was tracking south of the Smalls at midnight.

The abnormal-load convoys carrying the components from the port to Waterston are
expected to begin early next year, subject to final police and highway approvals.

A community benefit fund linked to the project will provide training opportunities and energy-
bill support for residents in nearby Waterston, Llanstadwell and Neyland.
Further updates will be issued by Dragon LNG as the Port of Milford Haven as the delivery
programme continues.

Photo: Martin Cavaney

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