 Hei Gareth, can you hear us? I can't yet, apologies for my leakness. I couldn't get on to the Wi-Fi and Milbanks. They've had a systems upgrade, so they've shut me out. So thanks for hanging on. No worries, just to let you know your second after Katie on the questions. No worries, yeah that's fine. That's great, the minister will be with us now in about 10 seconds. Borodah a Croeso, thank you for joining me for today's Welsh Government press conference. This morning, thousands of steel workers and their families here in Wales, and indeed across the UK, are facing an uncertain future that is causing anxiety and concern. Yesterday, British Steel announced plans to close its blast furnaces in Scuntl and to replace them with two electric arc furnaces, potentially putting thousands of jobs at risk. In September, Tata Steel and the UK Government announced a proposal to invest in electric arc furnace steelmaking in Port Talbot. While we welcomed the signalled investment in the future of the steel industry in Wales, at the time, I highlighted the potential impact of such a deal. Not only on the workforce and the industry, but on the local economy, the wider supply chain and those communities who rely on steel. I was clear then and am now that Tata should conduct meaningful consultation with their employees through their recognised trade unions about any of their proposals. Then last week, of course, there was speculation that Tata planned to announce its intention to completely close the heavy end at Port Talbot, including both blast furnaces, by the end of March 2024. That could have resulted in the loss of thousands more jobs in communities that are amongst the most leased well-off in the UK. In the end, Tata Steel didn't make a formal announcement following their board meeting in Mumbai. But we cannot underestimate the potential impact on those thousands of families and the potential devastation of the local economy and the wider supply chain. As Christmas fast approaches, the concerned communities where those steel plants are located will today again be waiting anxiously. Since last Wednesday, I have spoken with the local elected members for Port Talbot, steel trade unions, who have all voiced their huge concern over this potential announcement. I have been talking with senior representatives from Tata Steel UK. In those talks, I have stressed again the importance of proper and meaningful consultation and full consideration of the CINDEX report into alternative options that the trade unions are preparing. CINDEX are a specialist consultancy with expertise in the steel industry. The Welsh Government remains committed to supporting a just transition to net zero in a way that aligns with our well-being of future generations act. We are concerned not only about the impact on employees and communities, but also in avoiding offshoring our emissions from Wales to other parts of the world. Emissions from production and transport need to be considered as part of that assessment. We are also clear about the opportunities for a stronger sector. From electric vehicles and wind turbines to tins of beans and new homes, steel is the thread that will run through the economy of today and tomorrow. It matters to growth, security, net zero and the UK's place in the world. Our long-standing commitment to the sector is based on these realities. Both the First Minister and I continue to speak with the company and steel unions through this week. I will keep lines of communication open and I reiterate my calls for the UK Government to work with us more closely. I've also written to the sector of state for business and trade seeking an urgent meeting to discuss the matter. At such a difficult time, I'm also conscious of the Chancellor's Autumn Statements that is fast approaching. The UK Government needs to decide soon on the support that it will provide to investment zones in Wales. High potential clusters can offer the opportunity for growth in high quality jobs and private sector investment, as well as opportunities to improve productivity and skills in the longer term. These sectors will be integral to the path to stronger economic growth in Wales and the UK as a whole. Wash Ministers have met to discuss proposals on a number of occasions that have been in development for some time. Based on the analysis of opportunities for growth, our view is that there is a case for two investment zones in Wales, one in South East Wales and one in North East Wales covering Flintshire and Wrexford. Each would reflect the specific strengths and existing clusters in each region, which, amongst others, includes compound semi-conductors in South East Wales and high value advanced manufacturing in North East Wales. The UK Government will now need to decide whether to commit to this investment in Wales. But let me be clear, identifying potential investment zones against specific criteria is by no means a reflection on the economic opportunities or the need for ambitious investment in other parts of Wales. It remains the Welsh Government's firm view that a comprehensive UK industrial strategy should be directed at these opportunities. This is the model backed by the fiscal firepower of the UK Government that would provide the confidence needed to unlock investment in more secure businesses and better jobs. As with free ports in Wales, we want to make sure investments contribute to our net zero ambitions and the promotion of fair work, including trade union access. We will not accept a dilution of workers' rights within investment zones. That is one of the key tests, a principle, that this must add to our economic mission. Our thoughts remain with those thousands of Tata employees, their families, the wider community and the supply chain and all those involved in working with and supporting the five Tata facilities in Wales. As a result of the speculation last week, more of those people will be fearing a more uncertain and unsure future in the run up to Christmas. I'll now take questions from the journalists. We have a number in the room and a number online. We'll start in the room with Katie Fenton. Thank you. Given how many thousands of families do rely on Tata for their livelihood in Port Albert, what support is being put in place, what visions do you have in terms of support for those who are looking likely to lose their jobs? Are there any other job opportunities being created? I think the starting point is that if there is to be a meaningful consultation, then we should not accept as a matter of fact that thousands of job losses are inevitable and over the sort of pace that could happen if the entire heavy end closes at the end of March. That's why meaningful consultation with trade unions due to present their proposals imminently is based on a report by Syndex, an expert steel consultancy, are really important. Until that consultation and negotiation is completed, we can't be certain about the scale of the change that would be made, the scale and the speed of any changes in employment, not just directly at Tata, of course, but in the wider supply chain. There are lots of contractors around the steelworks as well, including businesses in the Tata Group too. What we are prepared to do, as we always have done, is to be supporters of the steel sector as both advocates and in practical terms as well. We have at various points helped with some investments to co-invest in smaller facilities. We've also been prepared to invest in the skills of people to transition to different ways of operating in the future. And where there are job losses, we do have support available to our React Plus programme, for example. The challenge will be the scale of what might happen, when and how that crystallises, what happens in negotiations between trade unions and the company, and whether or not if there is an alternative proposal for the future, whether the UK government as a key stakeholder are also prepared to invest in that. I think all of those things need to happen before we can understand the scale of what Welsh Government support might be required or desired. Thank you. And we've heard reports that one of the blast furnaces could have its life extended. Is that something the Welsh Government would support? Well, we're aware that there are, following the relining of blast furnaces that took place some years ago, there's a difference in the expected life of different blast furnaces on the site. So part of this is the understanding of the life that's left in the blast furnaces, where there is a need to extend the life in those blast furnaces, or whether indeed it's possible for them to carry on to deliver a different pace and scale of transition. So if there is support needed, then we could of course have that discussion with the company, the trade unions and the Welsh Government. But it still comes back to the point of what transition is the UK prepared to invest in in the co-investment that the UK Government announced with Tata for electric arc steelmaking? With the announcement made in Scunthal that could end primary steelmaking across the UK, that means the UK could be at a point where it is reliant on imports from the rest of the world for that primary steel that is still needed. So actually, the potential to continue with the blast furnace asset takes on a different character that is more than just the conversation in Port Talbot. But it's our understanding that at least one of those blast furnaces has more life left in it than the coming months. Thank you, Katie. And I'll move to Gareth Lewis, who is online. Good morning. I'm just wondering what sort of contingency plans you're making for Tata pulling out completely. So winding down the blast furnaces by March 2024 and then not building electric arc furnaces there? Well, in the conversations that I've had directly with the company, including today together with the First Minister, Tata have reiterated that it is not their intention at all to pull out of Wales. The agreement they reached with the UK government was specifically to deliver a future based on electric arc steelmaking. There is always a risk in every part of life that something could end, but that is not what the company are saying they are proposing. It is not what they are planning to do. It is not what they are committed to do with either us or indeed with the UK government. The proposals that were briefed last week would see significant job losses and significant economic and human pain caused from those, and we would need to work very hard to support people in those circumstances. It's not a realistic proposal at this point in time. The whole works could close and I think it's important not to get drawn into suggesting that's a realistic proposal now. That will cause further unnecessary anxiety for people, not just in Port Talbot, but in the wireless steelmaking community. We're working with proposals that have been briefed with a report that we understand is coming imminently in the coming days, but may provide an alternative future and our call is for the company, trade unions and the UK government to engage in a meaningful way with those alternative proposals. Just a second question, away from steel actually, on that decision, the story over the weekend, that railway line for major events by Chlanwyrn has been scrapped. How does that tally in with the Welsh government's desire to bring major events into Wales and make Cardiff the capital in particular an attractive venue for these big events to come into? We are already a significant major events destination. It's a real mark of success that we have major events coming to and continuing to come to Wales, not just to Cardiff. And it's obviously disappointing that Transport Wales are not able to progress the proposals that they have made and that they've invested money in. And TFW themselves have said that they're disappointed by the steps that they've taken. This is the reality though of all the pressures on capital budgets. It is not just inflation but that is a key factor in it. And of course it's worth reminding everyone that at the spending review the capital budget for Wales was actually reduced. There are consequences to each of those choices. A different set of choices on capital funding would allow us to make different choices, not just in the rail sector but elsewhere as well. And I'm sure you'll know Gareth has indeed and everyone else involved in any kind of construction project that there is real pressure on individual firms and proposals for any significant construction works right across the economy in Wales and indeed the UK. So I would hope there'd be room for a more constructed conversation with the current or any future UK Government about how we invest in key infrastructure projects. And I think that would add more to Wales's growing and deserved reputation as a good home for major events. So I would hope to have those conversations and look forward to landing more major events in the future. Thank you Gareth and I'll have Andy Davieson, who is in the room with us today. Thank you. You've had conversations you say with senior representatives from Tata in the last week. What exactly is your understanding of what they were proposing? What would be the timeframe? Were they indeed proposing that both blast furnaces be closed by the end of March next year? And how many jobs precisely are we talking about that could be lost here? So on the job numbers that is hard to tell precisely and I actually don't think it's helpful for the Minister to stand up and talk about specific job numbers because actually that still depends on a negotiation and a consultation that has not taken place. Even if it were about the proposals that were briefed and reported on extensively last week. But you're aware, as everyone else is, that the proposals that were briefed and reported last week were to close the heavy end to end all blast furnace activity by the end of March next year. So within this financial year. Now that would cause thousands of job losses but the difficulty is you think about direct jobs and indirect jobs as well and that's why a consultation about any and all proposals includes what the end proposal would look like and it includes the timeframe for that to happen as well. We've made that clear in our conversations with all sides. In this conversation we are being honest and consistent in the conversations we have with every partner and I think that matters. The Welsh Government remains an honest broker and nothing that I've said this morning should come as a surprise to Tata or to the steel trade unions and we'd like to be engaged in a more constructive conversation with the UK Government to understand what is possible and that includes action that all stakeholders may still choose to take. Do you know why Tata didn't make that formal announcement as expected last week? What happened there? And in the conversations that you've had with Tata what undertakings have you got from them about what happens next? Well, in the conversations we've had we have been told that the company want to understand the proposals that are imminent from the trade union side working with Cyndex as I say as specialist consulting with expertise in the steel sector and that's good news as far as it goes but we then have made clear in all of our conversations with both Tata and the steel trade unions that our core will be for genuinely meaningful consultation. So meaningful consultation would not be receiving the report and then the next day rejecting it. There needs to be a genuine consultation about what it proposes and what that means and that may well need other stakeholders us but also the UK Government to be clear about what that would mean the resource you'd need to invest in a future the length of time that that would take place what it would mean for future jobs here in the UK what it would also mean in terms of our emissions footprint not just Wales but the wider UK as well because you'll recall Andy that part of the reason why the UK Government said it would invest in a future for electric arc steelmaking was it would produce greener steelmaking and reduce our emissions. Actually we need to understand the emissions footprint of alternatives if the heavy end were to close by the end of March and a broad assertion of what those emissions would be is one thing but we need to understand some of the detail in where the steel would come from the carbon footprint of that steel production and the carbon footprint of the transport for that steel into the UK if it were to be transported into the UK to be rolled. Now that's one vision and we need to understand what the alternative vision would be when it's presented by the steel trade unions and their specialist consultancy syntax our expectation and we have been told by the company that they will engage in meaningful consultation that is our expectation of what should happen and I wouldn't want to put a time for them on how long that meaningful consultation would need to take place they need to come to the best possible answer within all of the challenges that exist now and in the future but as I said in my opening statement with all of the opportunities for the steel sector in the industrial future we have today and the one we will definitely have tomorrow. I have Lauren Phillips from Business Life who is on Zoom. I was going to ask what concerns do you have about the quality and efficacy of recycled steel as opposed to primary steel for tatas downstream operations like Trostre? Obviously there's a bit of debate around the effectiveness of recycled steel secondary steel in terms of construction which against primary steel and what's your market intelligence telling you about the views of existing clients who will start to buy this recycled steel from primary sources? So our understanding is that electric arc produced steel has a number of uses and qualities that have advanced in the last decades. We've actually invested in some of that research in the Metals Institute in Swansea University but there's more university research being undertaken in London as well. But it is our understanding that the tin plating plant in Trostre needs primary steel for it to work, for it to do its job. So that's part of the concern that we have expressed that we have asked questions about. And if that steel is to be imported then the length of commitment for that steel to carry on being imported into the UK matters to us. It matters to workers in Trostre but it's also an issue for the UK as a whole. Steel is a strategic asset for any major economy and if all blast furnace activity ends without an alternative way to make primary steel then the UK could be the only G7 country not to have primary steel making capability. And that is a choice for the UK government which has consequences if you are then reliant on a future where all of that steel needs to be imported. So there are strategic choices for the UK to make here as well as choices for each of the steel making companies and their trade unions and understanding the impact on communities. But I think Trostre is probably the best example of where you require primary steel making to allow Trostre to do its work in tin plating. Every kind of Heinz baked beans that you buy in the UK comes from Trostre. So there is plenty of work going through there and my understanding at present is that Tata say that they will carry on delivering steel to Trostre to allow it to do what it can do and what it does do very successfully with a very committed and highly skilled workforce. Thank you. And the second question is obviously British Steel announced in scamp, obviously, that they are also switching to electric arc furnaces. And if Tata Steel do the same, there will be a bit of a scramble for scrap steel in the UK. Do you have any concerns? Have you heard any concerns in your conversations about supply and demand issues of recycled steel if all our steel manufacturers in the UK switch to electric arc furnaces? So this was a question that we've been discussing for a number of years since I became the economy minister and understanding that all of the steel sector, both companies and the trade unions themselves have been engaged in a conversation about how to decarbonise, not if. Electric arc is part of the answer to that. The steel council that took place in this building nearly three years ago with Kwaji Kwatan, if you remember who he is, when he was the Bay Secretary of State, the conversation we had here envisaged that actually these conversations were live and active between the UK government and steel companies. One of the things that I have consistently talked about in the steel councils when they met but outside that is the need to do something about scrap metal. At present, we export almost all of our scrap metal. If we're going, there's plenty of steel, plenty of metal that is produced and scrapped in this country to undertake significant steel making capacity. I think it's over 10 million tonnes that is produced of scrap steel, the great majority of which is exported. So actually, if we're going to have more electric arc steel making, then the UK government needs to consider what that looks like, whether extra incentives are required to intervene in a business model where companies generate profit by exporting that scrap and what that then looks like if they want more of that scrap to be retained in the UK to have the right quality of scrap and there is then a potential for alternative jobs to be created in the UK in servicing a market for a larger amount of electric arc produced steel. That should be a good thing, I think, and having a vision around that and an expectation that companies themselves will invest in supply lines, I think would be positive, but it doesn't get away from your first point that the balance in steel making, there's a choice to be made at a UK level about whether the UK opt out to primary steel making and is wholly reliant on electric arc steel making at present. The view of the Welsh government is we should have primary steel making and electric arc steel making as part of our roots to the future. Thank you, Lauren. I've now got Bronwyn Weatherby from LBC who is in the room with us. At least one union has called for the UK government to take a stake in Tata, effectively part renationalising the steel industry so the country has more of a say in what happens to it. Is that a call that you back? The call that I would back is making sure that the UK government is more fully engaged in investing in the future of the sector. I'm not averse to the UK government taking a stake in a company. If that means there is a greater opportunity to see investment in the sector and in jobs for the future, but it does not have to be that that is, does not mean that is the only way to deliver the kind of commitment that we want to see for the future of the sector. Some of this really does belong on the level of ambition from the UK government and the level of support it is prepared to provide whether it takes a stake in a company or not. That is still one of the things that forms the parameters over what is possible. So a more ambitious UK government that is prepared to invest in the future alongside companies in whatever form on the expectation that more of that steel is produced in the UK because we know that in the medium term, never mind the longer term, there is a healthy future for steel production. The offshore wind platforms that we expect to see around Wales and other parts of the UK will occur on plate steel. We don't make that in the UK at present. There is lots more in steel making that we will need for the sort of net zero future that we want. I think there is an opportunity to do some that works for the UK and works for not just the communities that make steel but all of the rest of us that are reliant on it as well. Diolch. The King's Speech is today. Are you disappointed there is nothing in that that addresses the issues facing British steel at the moment? I don't think the King's Speech itself really affects the key choices that are still to be made and the willingness of the UK government to be an active partner in the future is on what it has already said. The ability to invest in the future exists regardless of what it said in the King's Speech. The ability to have conversations with the steel sector has been there for a number of years. As I said, since I became the economy minister, there has been a conversation about what a decarbonised steel sector could and should look like in the UK and the UK government's role in doing that. This has been a conversation over several years and it has taken place before I became the economy minister. The King's Speech isn't really the issue here. It is about the willingness of companies in the sector to invest in the future, the willingness of the UK government to invest alongside them and to incentivise a sort of future that I think most people, not just in Wales but in the wider UK, would want. Thank you. Finally, we have Ruth Mosowski from Wales Online who is on screen. Morning. I hope that you weren't at the key discussions six weeks ago now with Tata because Welsh Government hasn't got the money and therefore the influence to shape those discussions. This week we spoke to Tata about these latest reports. It doesn't seem like you've got any of those answers despite having been at the table. Given that you want a UK Labour government within the next year, what difference is that going to make and what is UK Labour's position on Tata and that's where the power is in this conversation? I think the sector of state's comments were unfortunate, not as constructive as I would have wanted them to be. We could have been part of the conversation because the consequences of any choice will matter for devolved responsibilities and as I said earlier, we have always been a constructive partner with the steel sector and all of the companies directly make clear to us that they value the way in which they've been able to work with the Welsh Government. It was, in honesty, a different set of choices that led to the Welsh Government being excluded from those conversations. I've always been clear that the UK Government is a key stakeholder in the future. On a recent visit to Port Talbot, Keir Starmer made clear that there would be more ambition for the future of the sector and more support from a future UK Labour Government. If there's more support, I think there's an understanding, you'll have greater expectation about what takes place. I think people can be confident that if there were a different Government at a UK level with Labour leadership, then there would be the willingness to invest more in the future of the steel sector and that I think would make a difference to the transition to decarbonise the sector. I think it would make a difference to the number of jobs, high quality jobs that people can see within the sector and in related industries too. So I think they've had an opportunity to listen to not just what was said by Keir Starmer, but also Jonathan Reynolds, the Shadow Business Secretary, but I think there is a significant difference between the ambition and willingness to invest in the future of steel between the current Government and an alternative Labour Government. I want to see a level of ambition from the current Government and a level of investment that means that the future is not determined in a way that I think would cost jobs permanently before a UK general election. I actually think that would politically be good news for the current UK Government, but that is a choice for them. We'll carry on making the case for investment in the sector as we have done and we'll continue to. Karen, your brief. Surely you'd concede that big events, major events in Cardiff is good for businesses, it's good for tourists, it's good for putting Wales on the world stage, but even this weekend with the rugby game there were more reports of people not being able to get into the city safely and confidently and easily on trains. That's not new. That's been going on for years. One of the things you were going to do to change that was this section of line at Llanwyn. You cancelled that. Is that not a failure of your Government to resolve what is a major problem affecting thousands of people? I'd prefer the Welsh Government hasn't cancelled that. Transport for Wales have indicated they can't go ahead with it because of the reality of their budget pressures. And it's worth reflecting, Ruth, not just what I said earlier about the fact that our capital budget was reduced in the last comprehensive spending review, but the inflationary pressures have took place and the fact that the Welsh Government has gone through a very difficult in-year exercise to move money to help support the National Health Service and indeed Transport for Wales. But it shows the scale of the difficulties that we are collectively facing across the country. Of course I want to see more investment in key infrastructure. Who wouldn't and who doesn't? But there have to be choices made about how to maintain what we have and still to be able to invest in future infrastructure. So the capacity that should come online with delivering electrification, the capacity that should come online with the new rolling stock that is going out as well. All of these things matter and at the same time Cardiff and Wales more generally are still major event destinations where people want to come here do come here and the people running those events and partners, local authorities are key partners in the success of major events in Wales and people continue to want to come back to Wales. Whilst there are always difficulties and challenges that I don't attempt to avoid and say don't exist we should reflect that the event sector has been a real success story for Wales with its growth and with its quality and we will carry on investing in supporting the sector as much as we are able to because I do agree there are economic and indeed societal and cultural benefits only healthy, thriving and successful events sector. Thank you all for your time this morning. I will see you no doubt in the future at this and other events. Many thanks.