The ovens had been kept alight until the weekend to allow for negotiations with prospective buyers.
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“I can not continue to draw on taxpayers’ funds to keep the ovens operational when there is no realistic prospect that a buyer will be found”.
Anna Turley, Labour MP for Redcar, said she was angered by the decision to close the works.
Local MPs have said the loss of 2,200 jobs is devastating.
This is a very dark day for Teesside and the North East, the repercussions of this closure will be felt through the supply chain and the regional economy for years to come.
Unions have suggested that Ministers could have arranged for the ovens to be kept running in order to provide more time to find a buyer.
Around 150 jobs are to go at coal suppliers Hargreaves as the knock-on effect of the SSI collapse gathers momentum.
So, if you are a local employer, please support these fantastic workers by joining others and offering a job to someone from our community if you can. “The Government have abandoned Teesside”.
But Business Minister Anna Soubry said the Teesside plant had never been profitable, leaving the official receiver with no choice but to close the site.
He added that the government’s “laissez faire approach” sets a “dangerous precedent for an industry battling to stay afloat in the face of cheap Chinese imports and high energy costs”.
At the beginning of October, the Government also announced an £80m support package for workers facing redundancy as a result of the mothballing of the plant.
Sue Soroczan, district manager of Durham and Tees Valley Jobcentre Plus, said: “We’ve had over 50 employers attend the jobs fair today, and there have been hundreds of people coming through the door during the course of the event”.
Blenkinsop said: “While it is good that workers in Sheffield might benefit from this loan, I fail to see why the government seems impotent when it comes to providing financial support for…those 1,700 steel workers across Teesside who are losing their jobs”.
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Javid said there was no guarantee putting taxpayers’ money into keeping the coke ovens going “would help a single British worker”.
