Responding to the Chancellor’s Budget announcement on funding for the former SSI steelworks site in Redcar, Labour MP for Redcar Anna Turley said:
“The £123 million for the SSI site, as trailed by the Tees Valley Mayor earlier this week, is welcome. But most of it looks to be previously announced basic maintenance funding for keeping the site safe. This should go without saying as the government made the decision to close the site and must bear the safety costs that come with that until the site is redeveloped.
There is nothing new in this announcement that will create new jobs and attract investment. Proper resources need to be put into that task through the South Tees Development Corporation so we can get moving on the ambitious masterplan. It is time to back up warm words and glossy brochures with some real substance and I am disappointed the government don’t seem to have put their money where their mouth was today. The site should be the go-to place for investment in the UK right now and the government needs to invest further to unlock jobs. It is the least they can do for Teesside given their complete failure to save our steel industry.
The Chancellor is obviously desperate for a positive story from this flailing budget but it’s wrong to use money already committed to Teesside to pretend we are getting a boost.”