ConDem claims of being “pro-growth” started to unravel yesterday as the damaging effects of Wednesday’s budget on Welsh manufacturing became apparent. Steel giant Tata has warned that a new carbon tax announced in the Budget dealt the industry "a potentially severe blow to the sustainability of UK steelmaking."
Welsh Lib Dems who have been crowing over how much they influenced the chancellors tax plans, including a carbon floor price (CFP) of £16 per tonne from 2013, rising to £30 a tonne by 2020, now have to face up to being jointly responsible for what an industry spokesman described as an "exceptionally unhelpful and potentially damaging measure.”Tata Steel employs around 7,500 people in Wales with its biggest plant at Port Talbot. Other sites include rolling plants in Newport and steel coating plants in Shotton and Trostre.
Last week, Welsh Lib Dems were calling for a “proper manufacturing strategy” for Wales in order to achieve “growth, jobs and prosperity”. This week, the view among industry analysts is that more expensive UK steel production prices will represent an inbuilt cost disadvantage in world markets, putting investment and jobs at risk.
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