Starmer urged to invest in green steel as climate activists reveal Gavin and Stacey artwork on Port Talbot beach

Emily Price

Keir Starmer has been urged to invest in green steel as climate activists unveiled a giant image of Nessa in the sand of a Port Talbot beach against the backdrop of Tata’s iconic steelworks.

The sand etching organised by Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion Cymru Wales is half the length of a football pitch and portrays the character from the hit BBC series Gavin and Stacey asking the Prime Minister, “Oh Keir, what’s occurring?”.

Darkness

It was created by the arts organisation ‘Sand In Your Eye’ and took several hours to draw out in the sand overnight, working in total darkness.

Four Welsh Greenpeace activists helped to rake the sand and put the finishing touches on the artwork on Tuesday (September 24) including the tattoo on Nessa’s arm that translates from Welsh as ‘hearts of steel’.

Job losses

Tata Steel is planning to change the way it produces steel at its south Wales site with the loss of up to 3,000 jobs.

The company will close the remaining blast furnace by the end of the month in readiness for switching production with a new electric arc furnace which needs fewer workers.

The smaller electric arc furnace will melt scrap steel or iron to produce steel, but the steelworks will no longer be able to produce its own primary steel.

Earlier this month, the UK Government agreed a £500m support package for Tata in a deal unions said will have “devastating consequences” for workers.

Climate activists and trade unionists are now calling on the Prime Minister to create a plan for green steelmaking in the UK which would protect jobs, be better for the climate, and stimulate the economy.

Greenpeace and Extinction Rebellion Cymru Wales say high grade green steel production is crucial for building a green economy and is needed for building the wind turbines, railways, and electric vehicles for a transition to a cleaner, greener society.

Paul Morozzo, Greenpeace UK senior campaigner, said: “We are out here today to urge the Prime Minister to keep steelmaking at home, rather than rely on imported steel, and to put forward a well funded green industrial strategy with green steelmaking at its heart. The green transition requires reindustrialisation in this country, not deindustrialisation that has damaged communities in the past.

“Proper investment in UK green steel production would help our renewable energy supply chain whilst supporting workers and communities in places like Port Talbot and Scunthorpe. This would give us British clean steel to build wind turbines, railways and electric vehicles that we need for the transition to a healthier, more secure, and greener way of life.

“Tackling the climate crisis presents a huge opportunity to create good sustainable jobs, unlocking new economic opportunities for communities all over the country. Climate justice and worker justice must go hand in hand so that we can all experience the huge benefits of the transition to renewable energy.”

Personal

Janina Hines of Extinction Rebellion Cymru Wales, said: “I’ve lived in Port Talbot all my life and generations of my family have worked at the steelworks, so what’s happening here is really personal for me.

“Everyone in the community has a family member or close friend who will be affected, it could be devastating for communities in south Wales and beyond. We have seen from the disastrous closure of coal mines in the 1980s the lasting effect these decisions can have when they don’t have workers and communities at their heart.

“I care deeply about the threats that climate change is bringing to Wales and the world over, which is why I’m fighting for the climate as an activist locally.”

Claire Peden, a Team Leader at Unite Trade Union, said: “It’s clear, the government has been short-sighted in allowing the move away from producing Virgin Steel in Port Talbot.

“As Tata closes the blast furnace in Wales, it builds a new one in India, this is not a green transition. We urge the government to invest in the future with concrete job guarantees that will give Welsh steelmaking a bright future.”

A Department for Business and Trade spokesperson said: “Steel is vital for a vibrant, secure economy. We are working in partnership with trade unions and business to secure a green steel transition that’s both right for the workforce and delivers economic growth.

“We will publish a Steel Strategy next Spring that will set out a long-term vision for a bright and sustainable steel sector and will work in lockstep with our Industrial Strategy – which will ramp up investment and create more well-paid jobs right across the supply chain.”