TATA Port Talbot Y Byd ar Bedwar

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-After the shocking news...

-..that almost 1,000 jobs in the

-steel industry are in the balance...

-..I've spent the last week

-in Port Talbot...

-..meeting people

-who are worried about the future.

-We hope everything

-will be fine for us as a family.

-You think what's going to happen

-in the future.

-In the shadow of the steelworks

-is the Sandfields estate...

-..built to house the workers.

-There are almost 6,000 homes

-in Sandfields...

-..and 14,000 inhabitants.

-After the growth and decline

-of the steel industry...

-..these two areas of Sandfields...

-..which span the west and east

-of the estate...

-..rank among

-the lowest 5% in Wales...

-..in terms of unemployment

-and deprivation.

-I don't think we have a clue what

-the effects will be for many years.

-Will these redundancies

-be the beginning of the end...

-..for the families

-with steel in their blood?

-RADIO

-"Monday, the 18th of January.

-"The future of the steel industry

-in Wales is our top story."

-Last Monday,

-after days of conjecture...

-..over the future of the Welsh steel

-industry, there was an announcement.

-"Tata Steel is expected to confirm

-that hundreds of workers...

-"..will lose their jobs,

-including some here in Port Talbot."

-Over 4,000 people

-work for Tata Steel in Port Talbot.

-But the future of around 750 of them

-is now in the balance...

-..as the company cuts back

-to deal with losses.

-One of those in danger of losing

-his job is 36-year-old Jamie Jones.

-He works in the mill...

-..which treats the steel

-before it leaves Port Talbot.

-It's hard to believe.

-I have a child and a mortgage.

-If we lose our jobs, it'll be hard

-for people to find work.

-Jamie went to work at the local

-steelworks when he left school...

-..20 years ago.

-He's the third generation

-of his family to work there.

-This is the only place

-I've worked.

-I finished school at 17

-and did an apprenticeship.

-I've worked there for 20 years

-since then.

-I've worked there

-as have my father and grandfather.

-Other family members

-have worked there too.

-I can't believe

-that that place is going.

-I don't want to think about it

-but that's the way it's going.

-Like many in Port Talbot...

-..Jamie has spent his professional

-life in the town's steelworks.

-He says that the news about cuts has

-been a big blow for the workforce.

-Heads have dropped.

-No-one knows what's going to happen.

-Who's going and when.

-People there

-have families, mortgages, children.

-They're a little down.

-We just have to try and battle

-through it and see what happens.

-The modern steelworks...

-..started in Port Talbot

-at the turn of the 20th century.

-The site of the present steelworks

-was developed in 1951...

-..by The Steel Company of Wales,

-under the name Abbey Works.

-As the steelworks grew,

-Port Talbot's population...

-..increased to over 50,000

-by the end of the '50s.

-In its heyday in the '60s,

-18,000 worked for the steelworks...

-..and the wages were higher than

-the average in Wales and Britain.

-A large housing estate, Sandfields,

-was built to deal with the increase.

-The steelworkers in the town had

-first priority for the new homes.

-But the inhabitants

-have seen the industry...

-..grow and stagnate

-over the years...

-..from the nationalization

-under British Steel in '67...

-..to the privatization in '88.

-One of many workers

-lured to Port Talbot by steel...

-..was Kelvin Edwards' father.

-He moved the family to Sandfields

-in 1957.

-It's been part of my life

-for 50 years.

-It's been part of the town

-for longer than that.

-Kelvin followed his father

-into the steelworks.

-He was there for 43 years

-before retiring 18 months ago.

-But he still lives in Sandfields.

-You can talk

-to anyone in the street...

-..and they'll all have a connection

-with the steelworks.

-Either now or in the past.

-It's a crucial part of Port Talbot

-and who we are.

-But after the ebb and flow of over

-half a century of the industry...

-..parts of the estate

-built to house the workers...

-are now amongst

-the most deprived areas in Wales.

-Kelvin is worried that the latest

-job cuts will be a mortal blow...

-..for Sandfields,

-and for the whole of Port Talbot.

-It'll be the death of the town.

-It's not just the 750 steelworkers.

-They say that every job

-in the steelworks...

-..has a bearing

-on three more in the town.

-If 750 workers

-will lose their jobs at Tata...

-..it'll hit little shops...

-..or small businesses

-supplying things to the steelworks.

-It will affect everyone

-in Port Talbot.

-He's also worried that Tata's latest

-announcement is just the start.

-From those I've spoken to

-since the announcement...

-..there are concerns that

-this is the beginning of the end...

-..of making steel in Port Talbot.

-People have told me they're worried

-that slabs will be imported.

-They'll just be finished and rolled

-in Port Talbot...

-..and treated too.

-Tata says that the cuts

-are necessary...

-..because of the cheap steel

-coming from China...

-..and the high cost of production

-in Britain.

-Since 2011, China's exports

-to Europe has almost doubled...

-..and the price of steel

-has more than halved.

-According to Tata's accounts...

-..they're currently making

-significant losses.

-In 2014, the company's figures

-for Britain...

-..shows losses

-of almost half a billion pounds.

-That figure

-almost doubled in 2015...

-..with a loss of 837 million.

-Emma Hutin-Pearcy and her family

-live in the shadow of the M4.

-After registration,

-I do mathematics.

-Then...

-You like mathematics.

-She has strong links

-with the steelworks.

-Generations of her family, her

-grandfather, father and brother...

-..have worked there.

-We're a little worried.

-I hope everything

-will be fine for us as a family.

-But no-one's sure.

-You wonder if this is the start.

-What's going to happen

-in the future?

-Ten years ago,

-Emma's husband Matthew...

-..went to work for Tata

-in Port Talbot as well.

-Do you need a jumper?

-Emma works part-time

-with autistic children.

-Her husband's full-time role at Tata

-is crucial in supporting the family.

-I can't just sit around

-worrying about it.

-I just have to deal

-with the facts at hand...

-..and then whatever happens,

-we'll deal with them then.

-See you later.

-Emma's had a difficult relationship

-with the workplace.

-A horrific accident

-happened on the site in 2001.

-Emma's brother, Andrew,

-was in the middle of a shift...

-..when a furnace

-exploded inside the steelworks.

-We heard, well,

-my father received a phone call...

-..saying that there'd been

-a large explosion.

-My brother was one of the men

-who were missing.

-Her brother

-was killed in the accident...

-..along with Stephen Galsworthy

-and Len Radford.

-Andrew Hutin was 20 years old.

-I left the house

-at the same time as my brother.

-I was going to work as well.

-That's the last time I saw him.

-It'll stay with us forever.

-The family

-has had to cope with the loss...

-..while living

-in the steelworks' shadow.

-Her father was at the steelworks

-when the accident happened.

-He returned to work there

-a few years later...

-..in the field of health and safety.

-He wanted to ensure that such

-an accident wouldn't happen again.

-He tried

-to teach people what can happen...

-..and how it affects families.

-Emma considered leaving

-Port Talbot after the accident.

-In the end, she decided to stay,

-with her brother...

-..in her family's home patch,

-and raise her children there.

-It's very hard for us as a family

-because we have to look every day...

-..at somewhere...

-..which killed my brother Andrew.

-We're still understanding

-and accepting...

-..the importance of the steelworks

-to us as a family...

-..and to Port Talbot.

-In part two,

-I ask whether our politicians...

-..are doing enough

-to help the workers in Port Talbot.

-Wouldn't it have been a better idea

-to invest in Britain...

-..and make the specialist steel.

-It's a huge contract.

-Tata run the business.

-They're the ones who know

-where their market should be.

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-Our father in heaven...

-..we thank you for the chance to

-help those who suffer in this town.

-We pray for those who fear they will

-lose their jobs at the steelworks.

-Port Talbot on a Friday afternoon.

-The Capel Carmel food bank is about

-to open its doors to those in need.

-Thank you.

-Margaret Jones has spent

-her life in Port Talbot.

-She is a prominent

-member of the community.

-She volunteers with

-the food bank twice a week.

-She has seen an increase in demand.

-It's increasing month on month.

-It's totally obvious

-that people need our help.

-Some of them feel ashamed

-of asking for help.

-In the 1920s, Margaret's grandmother

-ran a soup kitchen at Capel Carmel.

-It was for the poor people

-of Port Talbot.

-With the growth of the steelworks,

-that poverty came to an end...

-..and hope grew that the community

-would never face the same hardship.

-She said we'd never see

-those times again.

-In the same chapel in Carmel

-where she worshiped...

-..we now have a food bank.

-The same thing is happening again...

-..unfortunately the Port Talbot

-food bank is thriving.

-750 jobs and the side effects.

-I think we'll have to, there are two

-foodbanks in Port Talbot already...

-..I can see more opening

-due to these job losses.

-The steelworks gave her grandfather,

-father and husband a living.

-She's disappointed politicians

-don't do more...

-..to support Port Talbot's workers.

-We can see the steelworks closing

-down completely in the next years.

-What will Port Talbot gain

-from all those years of hard work?

-All the pollution we've endured...

-..and all the wealth

-we've produced over the years.

-There is nothing, nothing at all,

-left in Port Talbot.

-There's no heritage at all.

-One in every five of the town's

-steelworkers' jobs are on the line.

-Margaret worries Port Talbot

-can't deal...

-..with another economic and

-psychological hit.

-The government tells them

-that they're not worth a thing.

-That's 750 jobs gone.

-Those jobs are gone,

-it doesn't matter.

-They only think about figures.

-So many millions, it's nothing.

-If they wanted to do something.

-If they had the desire

-to do something, they'd do it.

-I'm sure of that.

-We're irrelevant.

-Jamie Jones has worked

-at the steelworks...

-..since he left school 20 years ago.

-He and his co-workers are gravely

-concerned about their jobs.

-He feels the Welsh and UK

-governments should do more.

-They've known for a while that

-things haven't been going well here.

-It's been slow,

-so they've done enough quickly.

-The banks were in trouble,

-RBS got a government bailout.

-That happened instantly.

-Other places do it. Germany help

-their industry, so do Italy.

-America tax steel

-that's imported from China.

-We don't do it.

-That's what we need to do, I think.

-Adam Price, a former Plaid Cymru

-Member of Parliament...

-..is also calling

-on the government to do more.

-He wants the government

-to discuss investing public money...

-..in Port Talbot to help

-the industry calm the current storm.

-If we have the option to save

-3% of our entire economy...

-..and all the jobs

-that depend on it...

-..I have to say, we'd be guilty of

-being incredibly irresponsible...

-..not to consider this option.

-The Welsh Government's response

-is that it's too expensive.

-The Secretary of State for Wales

-says it's a lazy answer...

-..painting over the cracks instead

-of solving the actual problem.

-Is this a lazy solution as opposed

-to digging deeper?

-It's a commercial answer.

-It's a practical answer.

-Without sitting down

-and looking at the detail...

-..it's not possible

-to see if it would work.

-It's worth looking into

-the possibility...

-..as have governments in Italy

-and Lower Saxony.

-To deal with the situation the Welsh

-Government has set up a task force.

-Last Wednesday,

-they met in Cardiff Bay.

-There's everything to fight for.

-There's everything for us to do

-to ensure that steel stays here.

-We can not allow steel to go.

-They discussed

-how to offer support...

-..to workers losing jobs

-in South Wales.

-Throwing public money

-at Tata is not on the agenda...

-..according to the

-Welsh Minister for the Economy.

-People talking about let's take

-a stake in Tata, can we get real?

-Tata is a billion pound company.

-You just don't take a stake

-in a company like that.

-We can do ventures with Tata

-in terms of giving them support...

-..whether it's projects on R&D

-where it's involved a university.

-We've historically supported them

-in a range of areas there.

-People in Port Talbot

-will be asking now...

-..we've got a Welsh Government

-but what can they really do?

-There's reasons why they can't do

-things but what can they do?

-We'll be helping in terms

-of individuals.

-If the consultation comes through

-and there are job losses...

-..we will be there to ensure we can

-help them back in to employment...

-..help them to establish businesses.

-If they've got

-health and welfare issues...

-..it's a difficult situation, we can

-put help and assistance in place.

-The task force is creating a plan

-similar to the one in Milford Haven.

-That was used two years ago when

-Murco made 340 workers redundant.

-In Pembrokeshire, 70% of the workers

-have found new jobs.

-We will do everything we can

-to mitigate what happens to them.

-We should end this interview

-by talking about the people.

-It's easy to talk about the politics

-and who's not done what...

-..and who should do what.

-At the end of the day...

-..there's people who are going to be

-really worried about the future.

-It's our job to mitigate as much

-of that hardship as we can.

-Questions have been raised...

-..about David Cameron's support

-for steel in Britain.

-Last year, a Swedish company secured

-a 4 billion deal...

-..to supply the Ministry of Defence

-with steel.

-That raises big questions for Kelvin

-Edwards, a former steelworker.

-The British Government haven't been

-of any assistance to us.

-They tend to give contracts...

-..for big things in this country

-to foreign companies.

-I can't see the French, Italian

-or German governments doing that.

-Alun Cairns MP's father

-used to work as a welder...

-..at the Port Talbot steelworks.

-That was before he lost his job

-a few years ago.

-He says his government

-supports the industry...

-..and denies any claims otherwise.

-A lot of these accusations

-aren't true at all.

-They're false.

-A 3.9 billion contract...

-..was awarded to a Swedish company

-to supply steel for use in defence.

-Is that not true?

-It's true that kind of steel isn't

-produced in the United Kingdom.

-That's why the contract

-went to Sweden.

-Would it not have been better idea

-to invest in Britain...

-..and learn how to make this special

-steel if we needed it so badly?

-It's a huge contract.

-Tata run their business.

-They're the ones who know

-where their market should be.

-If they produced the kind of steel

-that we're looking for...

-..there would be a much higher

-chance that they won the contract.

-The procurement rules have changed.

-If they don't produce the steel

-that's needed on one project...

-It's a 3.9 billion project.

-I would underline the HS2 project

-that's worth 30 million.

-I'd also underline the project

-of electrifying the railway...

-..all the way to Swansea.

-That's worth over 3 billion.

-There are a lot of projects

-out there...

-..where the British steel industry

-can win and succeed.

-That is one project

-where no company in the UK...

-..produces the specialist steel

-required for that contract.

-According to Alun Cairns, the UK

-government is doing everything...

-..in its power to create favourable

-commercial conditions...

-..so Tata can flourish

-in places like Port Talbot.

-We've also acted and succeeded on

-the calls made by the CEO at Tata.

-Energy costs,

-anti-dumping measures...

-..procurement in the UK

-and business taxes.

-That's what we've acted on.

-People should measure

-our successes...

-..against the calls

-made by the company.

-We wanted to speak to Tata but they

-said nobody was available...

-..as they had to concentrate on

-their business for the time being.

-At present, Tata are consulting

-on cutting 750 jobs...

-..from their Port Talbot

-steelworks.

-These figures will be put

-in front of the company's heads...

-..in India in a few weeks.

-They will decide if the level of

-cuts are acceptable.

-Jamie Jones is the third generation

-of his family...

-..to work at the steelworks

-in Port Talbot.

-His worry is

-that he will be the last.

-He's hoping that there are measures

-in place to save the site.

-There's always hope.

-I'd like to see the works last

-and that there are jobs...

-..for the apprentices

-who come through.

-It would be difficult to believe

-if it closed.

-It's still going at the moment

-so hopefully things turn around.

-That's the only hope we have.

-Emma Hutin-Pearcy and her husband

-are living in hope.

-She's calling on Tata to think

-about Port Talbot's families...

-..as they make their decision.

-Tata is a family company

-out in India.

-That is how they started

-as a company.

-I just hope they'll think about us

-as families in Port Talbot...

-..and the effect this will have

-on us as a family...

-..and the families in Port Talbot.

-Despite the steel accident

-that killed her brother...

-..Emma's family haven't turned their

-backs on Port Talbot's steelworks.

-Her hope now is that others

-show the same support.

-We could have moved away

-but this is where my heart is.

-Our family is all around us...

-..and because of the graveyard,

-we could never move away.

-I can't even imagine

-living anywhere else.

-Next week, we hear complaints about

-the communications business, BT.

-They are incredibly bad

-at communication.

-About phone lines.

-We pay the same as every one else

-but we don't get the service.

-And broadband.

-BT needs to give a definitive answer

-about what happens and when.

-S4C Subtitles by Testun Cyf.

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