Prince William and his wife Kate visited the Tata Steel plant in Port Talbot, Wales, possibly to encourage management to reconsider job losses that have been announced.

Now that Prince Harry and Meghan have decamped to Canada, there is pressure on William and Kate to take on an even bigger workload and help the 93-year-old Queen.

Tata Steel said in a statement that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge “visited the integrated steelmaking site in order to learn more about the importance of Tata Steel’s operations to the UK economy and the important role the company plays in the local community”.

The royal couple saw the training workshops “where they met apprentices, future leaders as well as members of community groups supported by Tata Steel”.

They were also “shown the Hot Strip Mill at the Port Talbot site to see how Tata Steel transforms red hot steel slabs into steel strip before it is further processed for use by customers around the globe”.

The company said that “Port Talbot works employs around 4,000 people directly, and many thousands more rely on the industry. The company is recognised as an ‘anchor industry’ by the Welsh Government and is fundamental to the social and economic stability of the region and the wider UK”.

Martin Brunnock, director Strip Products UK, commented: “The site and its people are truly at the heart of the UK’s manufacturing industry, with steel made in Port Talbot being used across the world to make cars, cans, buildings, bridges, and sports stadia.

“The Port Talbot site has been producing steel for well over a hundred years, currently producing more than 3.5 million tons of steel a year, and we are aiming to ensure this continues as we give our apprentices and graduates the skills they need to become the steelmakers of the future.”

In a recent newspaper interview, Natarajan Chandrasekaran, chairman of the Tata Sons group which owns the steelworks, said the company “can’t have a situation where India keeps funding losses” at Port Talbot.

He emphasised the plant needed to be “self-sustaining”. Tata Steel’s pre-tax losses were £371m last year, up from £222m in 2017-18.

The Unite union said the claims added “more pressure” on workers.

“Everyone will tell you that the Tatas have gone way beyond to keep this going,” said Chandrasekaran. “Anybody else would have walked away. I don’t want to make those tall statements (about commitment). We are taking some hard calls. So, hopefully, we should see some results.”

In November, Tata announced plans to cut 3,000 jobs across Europe.

Welsh economy minister Ken Skates said it “appears to be the case” that about 1,000 of those could be in Wales.