Regional Dailies Launch Campaigns to Save Steelworks
The South West Evening Post and the Leader have launched campaigns to save Tata Steel’s UK plants from closure, reported Hold the Front Page. Both newspapers have steel plants on their patches.
The Leader, which runs three editions covering Chester and North Wales, set up an online petition after news broke that 850 jobs could be at risk. The newspaper plans to send the petition not only to Tata Steel, but also to the Welsh Assembly and Westminster.
Editorial manager Alan Davies, said: “As the Leader is at the heart of the community we are well aware of the impact of the loss of so many jobswould have in the area.
“We can’t allow such an important part of our industrial heritage go without a fight.”
The Leader was previously at the forefront of a campaign in the fight to save the 12,000 steelmaking jobs in the 1970s.
The South Wales Evening Post also started a petition calling on the Welsh Assembly and Westminster to find a solution. Evening Post editor Jonathan Roberts said “As the local newspaper, we believe it is essential we provide the platform for people to vent their frustration, and ensure their voice is heard in the corridors of power.
“Our politicians have to step up and find a solution. They cannot allow so many jobs to be lost to this region; they must save families from what appears a very bleak future indeed.
“We need them to take notice of local people, and we hope that our petition will enable us all to demonstrate a strong, united front; one demanding that decisive action is taken to prevent an economic disaster in South West Wales.”