Tata Steel bombshell: Help for steelworkers at jobseekers event

Tata Steel is proposing to lay off staff at the Brenda Road site in town and a spokesman for Hartlepool Borough Council said: “Any job losses are unwelcome and our thoughts at this sad time are with the workers affected and their families.

“As a council we will do everything possible to provide support and this includes financial assistance, help with training and assistance finding alternative employment.”

One immediate source of help could be the event at Hartlepool College of Further Education on Friday, January 29, between 10am and 3pm and the council spokesman said: “Those affected are welcome to attend.

“The drop-in event will feature a number of exhibition stands manned by various organisations who can offer support, advice and training.”

Nationally, emotions ran high as more than 1,000 steelworkers were threatened with job losses.

But Prime Minister David Cameron insisted the Government was taking action.

He said: “We’ll work very closely with the company and with the local communities to do everything we can to get people the training and assistance they need, and will continue to do everything we can to help the steel industry.

“There is, obviously, this worldwide glut and over-production of steel. It’s affecting countries right around the world.

“But the steel industry has asked us for action on energy prices - we’ve taken that.

“They’ve asked us for action on procuring more British steel - we’ve taken action on that.

“They want us to take action within the European Union and we’ve done that as well.

“But we’ll continue to work with them and I want to have a strong British steel industry at the heart of our important manufacturing base.”