A package of up to £9 million has been announced to support steelworkers and the local economy hit by the latest wave of job cuts in the industry.

Tata Steel said its regeneration arm has pledged £3 million to help create jobs in Scunthorpe, while up to £6 million will be given by the Government to train workers and help local businesses.

Business secretary Sajid Javid said it was a "very difficult time" for the workforce.

Tata Steel announced earlier this week it will cut 900 jobs from its plant in Scunthorpe, and 270 in Scotland, effectively ending steelmaking north of the border.

The firm said the cuts were in response to a shift in market conditions caused by a "flood" of cheap imports, particularly from China, a strong pound and high electricity prices.

Tata Steel is also providing an additional £1.5 million to support job creation in steel communities around its Dalzell and Clydebridge sites in Scotland.

The UK Government said it was continuing discussions with the Scottish Government about further support.

Karl Koehler, chief executive of Tata Steel's European operations, said: "I recognise this is a challenging time for the employees affected by the restructuring we announced.

"We are committed to doing everything in our power to support those impacted and through UK Steel Enterprise we will help create new jobs in the affected local communities.

"The UK steel industry is facing extremely challenging circumstances and we welcome the Government's pledge to match our funding package for those affected."

Mr Javid said: "The Government has no intention of simply standing aside whilst the steel industry faces global challenges on a scale unprecedented in recent years. We will do everything we can to help workers and to ensure a level playing field for the industry.

"Tata Steel has a strong track record of creating jobs and supporting local communities right across the country, and its commitment to this package today is to be commended."

The Government said it has asked Baroness Liz Redfern, leader of North Lincolnshire Council, to lead a taskforce to co-ordinate the support programmes and consider whether additional support is needed.

She said: "The £9 million announced today by the Government and UK Steel Enterprise will provide a significant boost to the North Lincolnshire economy. We intend to work quickly to help people who have lost their jobs to ensure that every element of support is available, whilst at the same time encouraging new businesses to start and grow in North Lincolnshire."

The Business Select Committee is holding a session next Tuesday into the crisis.

Committee chairman Iain Wright said: "The UK's steel industry has been dealt a series of major blows in recent weeks and months. It is facing terminal decline, even though it is an essential foundation for other parts of our economy like aerospace, construction and automotives.

"As a committee we will be pressing the Government to explain what action it is taking now to help the steel industry through this crisis and its plans to support the industry as part of a competitive and dynamic manufacturing sector in the long term."

The latest bad news this week followed 2,200 job losses at the Redcar steelworks on Teesside, and fears of cuts at Caparo, which has gone into administration.

Unite assistant general secretary Tony Burke said: "This is a woefully inadequate response from the Government to support a town and industry which is being rocked by job losses.

"Steelworkers will view this limp response from the Government as an insult which only deals with the symptoms, not the causes, of the steel crisis. Even then you have to ask just how much of an impact this new money will have in creating good quality jobs and supporting the local economy.

"Scunthorpe and the surrounding area are reliant on skilled steel jobs. Once the jobs are gone the knock on impact will be felt throughout the supply chain and the local economy. The Government funding announced by Business Secretary Sajid Javid is a drop in the ocean to what is needed.

"The Government needs to do more than promising 'loose change' and warm words to workers who face losing their livelihoods. Ministers need to act now, and act fast, to deal with the causes of the steel crisis and to keep the light burning in the UK's steel industry."

Roy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community union, said Tata Steel and the Government were "putting the cart before the horse".

He added: "There is still a consultation process to go through and no worker will be redundant until that is completed. Community is focused on looking at the rationale behind the proposals and all possible alternatives that will save jobs. It will be challenging but all parties should be focused on the consultation.

"Ministers should be looking to protect these quality jobs for future generations in these communities. The Government needs to get round the table with Tata Steel and the wider industry and implement the measures required to sustain steel making and retain skills and jobs in this vital foundation industry.

"This contrasts with the hands-on approach that the Scottish government is currently taking which we have welcomed.

"Worried steelworkers will not be reassured by today's announcement, especially given the UK Government's track record over the support package for SSI workers in Redcar, where even now it is unclear what is new money and how it will be spent.

"If David Cameron is serious about building a Northern Powerhouse then let him prove it by taking the action we need to protect steel jobs in Scunthorpe and across the whole region."

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "While this funding package will bring some extra support to the community in Scunthorpe, it doesn't save any jobs and it doesn't address the fundamental problems the UK steel industry is facing.

"Ministers must come forward with a proper plan of action to save our steel and ensure a sustainable future for all our energy intensive industries.

"If the Government doesn't get its act together soon on industrial policy, we will see more firms go to the wall. And instead of a Northern Powerhouse, we will have an industrial dead zone."

Members of the GMB union employed at a Caparo plant in Oldbury, West Midlands, will hold a protest rally on the state of the steel industry outside the site later today.

Union official Russell Farrington said: "Most of the jobs at Caparo are highly skilled. The steel industry has been the cornerstone of the industrial life of the Black Country.

"If we don't do something soon this industry will be completely destroyed. Around 1,500 employees of Caparo in this region alone are facing the prospect of losing their jobs."

Shadow business secretary Angela Eagle said: "Labour welcomes the support for workers affected by the closure, however this is too little too late.

"The steel industry has been in crisis, and the Tory Government has sat on its hands and allowed thousands of high-skilled jobs to be lost.

"Rather than setting up more talking shops, the Government should be taking urgent action to safeguard the future of this important strategic industry, and should be pursuing an active industrial strategy to support manufacturing in this country.

"The Scottish Government must also support local communities."

Asked whether further packages of support could be made available, a Downing Street spokesman said: "We continue to keep this issue under close review, looking at what we can and should do in the various circumstances where we see jobs being lost and the impact that has on communities."

Dave Hulse, national officer of the GMB union, said: "While we welcome the support from Government and Tata Steel for the Scunthorpe and Scottish sites, let no one forget it's not about conceding that these jobs will be lost, it's about protecting jobs.

"That means taking action on dumping of cheap steel, energy prices, business rates, market conditions, procurement and international comparisons. Then we may be able to create a level playing field for our steelworkers."