Steel Industry Debate

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Steel Industry

Geraint Davies Excerpts
Thursday 26th May 2016

(8 years, 5 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lindsay Hoyle Portrait Mr Deputy Speaker (Mr Lindsay Hoyle)
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The penultimate choice: Geraint Davies.

Geraint Davies Portrait Geraint Davies (Swansea West) (Lab/Co-op)
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Five years ago, I asked the Prime Minister at Prime Minister’s Question Time whether he understood that the Chancellor—he is just taking his seat—

“unilaterally setting the minimum price for carbon in Britain will drive out inward investors such as Tata Steel”

in Swansea Bay. He responded:

“I will of course listen to the hon. Gentleman, but I think that Ratan Tata knows a bit more about his business than he does.”—[Official Report, 30 March 2011; Vol. 526, c. 338.]

Having failed Tata, will the Secretary of State now promise, first, fully to fund the pension fund, indexed to RPI, so that we do not short-change pensioners or cause contagion in the pension industry; and, secondly, to ensure a 25% Government share for the long run so that investors, whether Tata or others, have confidence investing in the future—

Lindsay Hoyle Portrait Mr Deputy Speaker
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Order. I call the Secretary of State.