TEESSIDE STEELWORKERS

Early day motion 1137, tabled 6 May 2003 by Vera Baird (Labour). Signed by 50 members.

That this House deplores the announcement by Corus that Redcar steelworks will be dis-aggregated from the rest of the firm and forced to sell its raw steel on the stiffly competitive world market, thus putting the continuance of the plant in serious jeopardy; notes that closure would result in the loss of 12,000 jobs in the sub-region; further notes that the steelworkers of Teesside are highly skilled and hard-working and have met every productivity target set by the company; calls on Corus to rescind this decision; and, in default, calls upon the Government immediately to engage with unions and management to ensure that the plant remains viable for the long term future.

Signatures by party: Labour 43, Liberal Democrat 3, Labour/Co-operative 2, Conservative 1, UUP 1.