Nick Clegg has been visiting Redcar, welcoming the deal to save its steelworks:
Last week Redcar owners, Tata and Thai buyers, SSI announced a deal which will safeguard 700 existing jobs at the huge site in Teesside. Nick Clegg said that the deal will also employ a further 800 new people and may see another 1,000 jobs created in the wider local economy.
He said: “It’s a great thumbs up for Teesside and the North East, for the steel industry and the UK. It’s a breath of fresh air at a time of difficult news about the British economy. I would like to pay tribute to Tata and SSI who struck this deal.”
Earlier in the week Lib Dem MP for Redcar, Ian Swales, had welcomed the news in typically pithy style on Twitter:
Yes!!!! Redcar steel deal is done
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6 Comments
Ah, Redcar, a rare triumph on an otherwise fairly disappointing election night for the LDs. My brother lives in that constituency, with its massive, massive swing to the LDs in the heart of Labour country and, rightly or not that it was the case, he says it was largely down to anger at the troubles at such a major employer for the area.
It will be interesting to see if Mr Swales can hold onto the seat come next election; it is very hard to break into a very safe seat, but I’ve no idea of whether, once achieved, a party generally manages to do well and challenge there from then on.
Either way, regardless of politics, some good news for a region that really needs it.
Odd that Clegg should visit Redcar when the deal there owed little if anything to the Govt but hasn’t found time to visit Sheffield Forgemasters so close to his own constituency.
I grew up in the town, and several of my family worked in the steel industry there.
The Labour Government’s failure over the steelworks was a major factor in Ian Swales’ victory last year, although not the only one.
Ian deserves a lot of credit for his work on this issue, as does the Government. He is a very able and hard-working constituency MP and I certainly hope the good folk of the constituency will recognise this at the next election.
Ian Swales needs a new printing press and can’t do it without donations – it will cost the thick end of 10k. Envelopes should from the unstinting, and the generous, should make their way to him c/o House of Commons, Westminster, he needs the help now,not three weeks before the next election.
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