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MPs are to hold an emergency three-hour meeting to discuss the UK steel crisis, after Angela Eagle, Labour’s shadow Business Secretary secured an urgent slot in the chamber.
Labour has warned the industry is “hanging by a thread” as the search for a buyer for Tata Steel's UK business has started, with “many tens” of firms set to be contacted in the hope of saving thousands of jobs.
Koushi Chatterjee, executive group director, said the aim was to sell the assets as a whole rather than splitting the business.
The sale covers several UK-based assets including the Scunthorpe steelworks, two mills in Teesside, an engineering workshop in Workington, a design consultancy in York, and associated distribution facilities, as well as a mill in northern France.
Sanjeev Gupta, the head of the Liberty Group, held talks with the Government and has raised hopes that jobs could be saved, especially at the huge plant.
Asked about his possible takeover of the Port Talbot steel works, he said:
“Our engagement will depend very much on what Tata and the Government are prepare to do to help save these businesses.”
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Sajid Javid Business Secretary told the Commons the Government was working very hard to find a buyer for the Port Talbot plant.
The Government stands ready to help, which “includes looking at the possibility of co-investing with a buyer on commercial terms,” he told the Commons on Monday.
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