First Minister vows government will do utmost to save steel jobs
“I know the announcement by Tata Steel that it intends to mothball plants in Cambuslang and Motherwell is a bitter blow to the staff there and their families.
“For decades, there wasn’t a family in these industrial heartlands who didn’t know a steel worker.
“Steel was part of the backbone of our economy – and this community.
“Scottish steel is an iconic symbol of this area. But its time need not be over yet – I want Scotland to have a steel industry and if there is a way to do that we are going to find it.
“I have had a useful discussion with unions, management and the workforce at both Clydebridge and Dalzell and there is a shared determination to find a solution that secures the future of both of the plants.
“I don’t understate the challenges we are facing here and nobody I have spoken to believes that this is going to be easy or plain sailing.
“I cannot guarantee we will be able to save these sites. But what I can give an absolute guarantee on is that the Scottish Government will leave no stone unturned in our fight for these plants.
“We know that the global circumstances are very challenging.
“But I have seen for myself that these are not plants that are falling down – they are state of the art, modern plants which have recent investment and a skilled and dedicated workforce in place.
“So we are working hard to find a new operator.
“I have convened a task force that will meet this week to set about exploring every option to keep these plants open and to keep people in jobs.
“I want Scotland to continue to have a steel industry and I’m determined to make every effort to ensure that we do.”
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon