By GB News (Politics) | Created at 2026-06-17 14:06:37 | Updated at 2026-06-19 10:06:32
1 day ago
Thousands of jobs could be at risk under Labour’s proposed steel tariffs, politicians from across the political spectrum have warned ahead of the measures coming into force next month.
Liam Byrne, the Labour chair of the business and trade select committee, said MPs had raised serious concerns with ministers after hearing evidence from steel producers about the impact of the planned changes.
Speaking in the Commons, he said the committee had formally written to the Government following a round‑table discussion with industry representatives.
“I’m today publishing the committee’s correspondence with ministers after the round table we held with steel producers, expressing a very high degree of alarm that these measures were not in the right place and thousands of jobs are now at risk,” he told MPs.
The concerns focus on plans to sharply tighten restrictions on steel imports entering the UK.
Under the proposals, the volume of steel allowed into Britain tariff‑free will fall by 60 per cent, with imports above that quota facing a 50 per cent tariff, double the current 25 per cent rate.
Ministers say the changes are intended to support domestic steelmaking and form part of a wider ambition to increase the share of British‑made steel used in the UK from around 30 per cent to 50 per cent.
New arrangements are required because existing safeguard measures expire on July 30.
Steel tariffs warning as MPs fear thousands of jobs at risk under Government plans
PA
The Government argues that without action, the UK risks becoming a destination for surplus steel diverted from markets such as the US, Canada and the EU, all of which operate strong protective tariffs.
Officials say such a scenario would threaten the long‑term viability of Britain’s steel industry.
Shadow business secretary Andrew Griffith said many of the steels required by aerospace, defence and other high‑value sectors are not made in the UK.
“That is a real issue, for example in steel used in aircraft wings or in defence applications that we need to make ourselves safe,” he said.
Critics warn the plans could have damaging consequences for manufacturers reliant on specialist steel grades not produced domestically
GETTY
He also cited concerns raised by industry leaders, including Confederation of British Metal Forming president Stephen Morley, who warned the proposals risk “accelerating the decline of its manufacturing base rather than preserving it”.
Liberal Democrat business spokeswoman Sarah Olney echoed those concerns, saying some sectors would struggle to adapt.
“The specialist steels needed by aerospace, defence and precision engineering are not made in this country in the grades or volumes that those sectors require, and qualifying a new source takes not a fortnight, but several years,” she said.
She argued that manufacturers could face significant additional costs despite having no viable domestic alternative.
Business minister Chris McDonald, a former steelworker, defended the Government’s position and insisted the measures were necessary to secure the future of British steelmaking.
He acknowledged that some specialist products not currently produced in the UK could be affected because tariff categories are defined broadly, but said ministers had made a deliberate choice to support greater domestic production capacity.
“This is about choices, and this Government has decided that we do want to have a full aerospace supply chain including our own speciality steels production, and that is a different choice to the choice the previous Government made,” he said.
Mr McDonald added that officials had listened carefully to concerns raised by manufacturers and industry groups regarding quota levels and specialist products.
He did, however, maintain that the policy’s intention was to protect steels already made in Britain or that could be produced domestically in the future.
