TRADE unions confirmed today that they have reached agreement to secure the future of British Steel, though remained wary that up to 500 jobs could be cut by the potential buyer.

The National Trade Union Steel Coordinating Committee — made up of representatives from Community, GMB and Unite — said it had struck a deal with Chinese firm Jingye to buy British Steel out of administration.

The firm became insolvent in May 2019, which put more than 4,000 jobs in Wales and the North East on the line.

Jingye is looking to buy the business from government liquidators after ministers promised to fund the company following its collapse. It is thought to be losing up to £1 million a day.

The deal, thrashed out between unions and management over a 10-day period, was endorsed in principle by the key union representatives on Thursday night.

But the unions remain concerned by Jingye’s desire to cut possibly hundreds of jobs.

The committee’s statement said: “We have seen the detail and this investment would transform the business and secure the future of British Steel.

“As was widely expected, Jingye also intends to reduce the overall headcount.

“This could be by up to 500 jobs — though significant numbers have recently left the business — and will be subject to ongoing detailed discussion at departmental level.

“This is not something that the unions could endorse and we have made the argument that the business needs to ensure the plant can be run efficiently and safely.”

The committee said that another focus during negotiations was ensuring that steel workers’ real-terms pay remained the same. It said workers should also not be affected by the scrapping of perks such as shift-premium payments.

Jingye is still in the final stages of negotiations with the government and the official receiver, but all sides are confident that a satisfactory deal can be reached.

Community operations director Alasdair McDiarmid said: “Faced with challenging circumstances, we believe that the dialogue between Jingye and the unions has produced a better deal for employees than what was otherwise on the table.

“We look forward to working with everyone to securing the future of British Steel under Jingye’s ownership.”

Shadow business secretary Rebecca Long Bailey said: “A strong steel sector is vital for the UK’s economy and security — and Labour congratulates the workers and their unions who refused to give up on their plant and fought hard for this deal.”