NICK THOMAS-SYMONDS: 'We can't allow the historic fires powering our steel industry to go out'

Few jobs are harder than working in a steel mill. But the physical, intense work builds resilience and pride in our historic steelworker communities.

My Dad worked in Llanwern Steelworks when I was growing up in South Wales. I remember feeling a sense of awe when I went there as a child and understood what he did every working day. Growing up, I felt the pride he took in his work.

The UK has a proud history of steelmaking. But its future hasn’t always been clear. International over-production of steel and a spike in energy costs have created a difficult trading situation for British companies.

Prices for steel have dropped just as the costs of making it have gone up. And the industry has been threatened by tariffs too.

But thanks to the new relationship this government has built with the EU, tariff-free access to their market for our construction-grade steel to traditional trade levels has been restored. This will save the UK steel industry millions.

We cannot allow the historic fires that power our steel industry to go out. It is a 37,000- worker strong sector, supporting thousands of families in towns across the UK.

And we have made a choice to put communities across the UK first. You can see it with our Industrial Strategy and in our international negotiations.

‘International negotiations’ can sound distant. Something done far away that isn’t always easy to explain. It can be hard to work out the tangible impacts on people’s lives. But this shows it; they can save industries millions. They protect jobs.

As Minister for EU Relations, I want to strike a new relationship with our largest trading partner, one built around trust and cooperation.

To get rid of the approach that the Tories and Nigel Farage want to take - adversarial, fuelled by suspicion and ideology. It led to a weaker trading relationship. It risked British industry at home.

They still want to reverse the deal. Putting their parties over the interest of the country.

There’s no denying the strength of British steel, forged over generations in Scunthorpe, the mills near my constituency in Port Talbot and many other towns and cities.

Through our new pragmatic working relationship with the EU, we have provided a vital boost to this critical UK industry.