0:00:02 > 0:00:04Hello. As First Minister of Wales, I believe it's my duty
0:00:04 > 0:00:05to be straight with people,
0:00:05 > 0:00:08especially when things are difficult and the news isn't great.
0:00:08 > 0:00:10That's why I wanted to use tonight's broadcast
0:00:10 > 0:00:12to talk about the steel crisis.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15And even though there's an election around the corner
0:00:15 > 0:00:17I'm not here to play one side off against the other.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20I just want to tell you how it is.
0:00:20 > 0:00:21As a Labour government,
0:00:21 > 0:00:24we've been working with Tata Steel for many years.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27And we've helped bring in hundreds of millions of pounds
0:00:27 > 0:00:28of investment into Wales,
0:00:28 > 0:00:34safeguarding thousands of good, well-paid jobs over a long period.
0:00:34 > 0:00:36Now that work is under threat.
0:00:36 > 0:00:39There's a steel crisis in the UK, and Tata want to sell.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42We've been working hard behind the scenes for months
0:00:42 > 0:00:43to try to prevent a closure,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46but there's still uncertainty and threat to the plants
0:00:46 > 0:00:49across Wales - Port Talbot, Shotton, Trostre, and Llanwern -
0:00:49 > 0:00:52and now we need the UK government to help out,
0:00:52 > 0:00:54because when the banks went bust
0:00:54 > 0:00:57the UK government was there to pick up the pieces.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00Now there's a moral, economic and strategic case
0:01:00 > 0:01:04to see the same kind of response for our steel producers.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07You know, I grew up just a few miles away from one of those plants,
0:01:07 > 0:01:10and I know how the community is shaped by the industry
0:01:10 > 0:01:12and the people who work there.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14But this isn't about the past, it's about the future,
0:01:14 > 0:01:18and steel must have a future in Wales and the UK.
0:01:18 > 0:01:20It would be a strategic disaster
0:01:20 > 0:01:24to become a country that doesn't produce its own steel.
0:01:24 > 0:01:27Are we seriously contemplating a future where the UK spends billions
0:01:27 > 0:01:31on its armed services but where we lack the material
0:01:31 > 0:01:33to produce a single ship or plane ourselves?
0:01:33 > 0:01:35And let's face it,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38we're talking about a modern works producing world-class product.
0:01:38 > 0:01:42With the right support, we can get through this tough period.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46And we can't be distracted by those who want to use this crisis
0:01:46 > 0:01:48as a stick to beat the EU.
0:01:48 > 0:01:52We need a grown-up response to a serious problem.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56So, yes, things are tough, the task ahead is complicated
0:01:56 > 0:01:59and it'll be hard to achieve a good result.
0:01:59 > 0:02:03But we're leaving no stone unturned in our quest to secure
0:02:03 > 0:02:07a sustainable future for our steel communities here in Wales.
0:02:07 > 0:02:10I've just come off the phone to Tata's head office in Mumbai,
0:02:10 > 0:02:14stressing the need for time to find a buyer for the Welsh plants
0:02:14 > 0:02:17and reminding them of their responsibility to the workers
0:02:17 > 0:02:19and the areas they operate in.
0:02:19 > 0:02:21I'll shortly be meeting the Prime Minister
0:02:21 > 0:02:23to impress on him the need for us
0:02:23 > 0:02:26to find a solution for our steel industry.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30Because never has our slogan, "Together for Wales",
0:02:30 > 0:02:31meant so much.