Lord Hanson of Flint
Main Page: Lord Hanson of Flint (Labour - Life peer)
Sajid Javid
My hon. Friend rightly highlights the fact that the jobs at risk are not just the obvious ones in the steel industry itself; there is a knock-on impact on tourism, as he has said, and on other jobs in the supply chain, which was mentioned earlier. I reassure him that we are genuinely looking at all options, and we will absolutely continue to do so.
Mr David Hanson (Delyn) (Lab)
The Secretary of State says that the issue of pensions is at the front of his mind. Will he reassure me further by saying what guarantees on pensions he is seeking from Tata as part of the sale, and can he guarantee that none of the pensioners in my constituency who have given their lives to Tata over many years will be worse off as a result of the sale?
Sajid Javid
What I can tell the right hon. Gentleman is that Tata is fully aware of its obligations, both legal and otherwise, on the pension scheme. I hope it will say more about that when it publishes its information memorandum. I am very much focused on making sure that the challenges of the pension scheme do not become an issue with regard to finding and securing a buyer. That is why we are talking to the trustees, to try to work together to make sure that the members’ interests are looked after and, at the same time, that we have the best chance of securing a sale.