British Steel Industry Faces “Existential Threat” as EU Hikes Tariffs to 50% Despite Starmer’s ‘EU Reset’ Giveaway
Britain’s Net Zero-ravaged steel industry is facing an “existential threat” as the European Union threatens the UK with “devastating” tariffs of up to 50% despite Keir Starmer’s recent ‘EU reset’ giveaway on fishing rights and youth mobility. The Telegraph has more.
On Tuesday, Brussels announced plans to impose swingeing taxes on all imports coming into the bloc, amid fears that a flood of cheap steel from China and other Asian countries are crushing the Continent’s domestic industries.
British steel producers will also be hit by the crackdown, dealing a blow that risks being fatal for many companies. Almost 80% of Britain’s steel exports currently go to the EU.
UK Steel, which represents producers, warned the new tariffs could unleash “the biggest crisis the industry has ever faced”, with steelmakers facing a potentially “devastating hit”.
Sir Keir Starmer pledged his “strong support” for the industry and said the UK was “in discussions” with the EU about the tariffs.
Government officials are now scrambling to negotiate carve-outs for Britain. It is understood that EU officials will use the talks to pressure Britain for further concessions in the wider post-Brexit settlement, even though ministers have already given significant ground on fishing rights and youth mobility.
The Government said it was seeking “urgent clarification” on Tuesday following the announcement.
The dispute will be seen as an embarrassment for Sir Keir, who has made forging closer ties with Brussels a main pillar of his plans to boost economic growth.
In May, the Prime Minister claimed the days of political squabbling with the EU were over as he announced closer alignment with the bloc on defence, trade and agriculture. It prompted criticism that Labour was giving away too much in return for too little and that the deal would make the UK a rule-taker from Brussels. However, Sir Keir insisted it would make people better off.
The Prime Minister now faces demands for yet more concessions just months after concluding his deal. The Telegraph understands EU officials intend to use talks on steel to press Britain to allow more Europeans to enter the country under the youth mobility scheme.
The EU’s tariffs will also effectively rip up an agreement signed with the UK just two months ago to loosen quotas for construction steel.
Former business secretary Sir Jacob Rees Mogg said: “This shows that Starmer’s reset is worthless, the EU always takes its pound of flesh but never gives anything in return.”
Worth reading in full.
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The UK collects tariffs for imports from the EU and it sets these tariffs in whichever ways it likes. So, why would the EU treat imports from the UK any different?
I guess the point is we were expecting special treatment because of other concessions. But I have not really followed the story as I think we have more important things to worry about.
The excerpt from the Dodderingraph makes it appear this way because the people who invented the term Project Fear obviously cannot just admit that, yes, being outside of the common market does have economic drawbacks.
I’m not aware of details of the fishing rights issue but youth mobility is a reciprocal agreement: Young people from the EU can get a medium-term visum (for a couple of years) to come to the UK and young people from the UK get the same rights wrt the EU. Hence, calling this a concession of the UK to the EU isn’t correct, especially when considering that the UK already had similar agreements with 11 other countries, including Japan, before.
I am not too bothered about the “economic drawbacks” (if they exist) – the damage to our economy is mainly coming from successive idiot governments.
I don’t know much about fishing rights, and don’t care overly about “youth mobility” one way or the other.
You seem somewhat bitter over Brexit, which if I am right is a shame because it’s not good to be bitter. All I would say is that you have the best of both worlds – you can stay here forever I think or go somewhere else in Europe. I know you can’t vote in General Elections which is somewhat anomalous when compared to “Commonwealth” citizens, but I am not sure you are missing much.
I’m inellectually mildly annoyed by the apparently eternal attempts of the Brexels to keep their pet bogeyman alive and the lack of honesty they usually employ for that. As it stands, any agreement with the EU short of a declaration of war, especially by a Labour prime minister, will cause them to come out in full force and repeat all their usual accusations as if it was still 2015 and any of this would still matter. Apart from that, I’m one of the foreigners Farage wants to purge from the Britain, I’m just not among the group which is to be targetted first. As EU national with settled status, my future options in the UK are subject to a planned “renegotiation” of the withdrawal agreement with the intent to curtail any rights under British law I should never have acquired as much as possible. The bottom line is thus: By moving to the UK, I have eliminated any chances of ever retiring on anything else but my own savings as I didn’t pay into the German system for long enough to get more than a few hundred quid per month out of it and cannot pay enough into the English… Read more »
To be fair though you are still here which is hopefully a sign that there is something you like about the place.
I think it’s wrong for this or any future government to renege on the terms on which people were legally permitted to settle here.
Reading is certainly a better place to live in than the one where I was living before (Mainz). But that was the worst dump I’ve encountered in my life and I’ve been living in nine different places so far which is probably above average.
OTOH, I’ve long since realized that England will always remain an alien country to me. But all my stuff is here and can’t be moved except at a significant cost. And that’s an expense I’d prefer to avoid, at least for as long as I’m still capaple of working which ought to be some more years (yesterday was my 53rd birthday).
Happy birthday.
I don’t know Reading that well but I am not overly impressed with what I’ve seen. There must be nicer places to live in Germany surely (if you like Germans and their culture)?
I am not sure I feel that much at home anywhere these days, less than ever since 2020.
Thanks.
Yes being outside the EU means you can’t trade as if you are all in one big country, inside their tarrif zone . But that’s a good thing if it enables both democratic accountability and also other trade agreements. The problem is is that there have been too many globalists of all sorts blobbing it up.
I was commenting on the Telegraph article. I have no interest in participating in any discussion about the pros and cons of EU membership. That’s nowadays a zombie debate as a decision about that
was made in 2016. Time to move on to other issues.
Nut Zero the gift that ‘eff’s everything everywhere……..dumping it would provide a massive economic boost, at zero cost ……so why doesn’t it happen.
That’s because Net Zero is extremely profitable for the people on the receiving side of it and they make sure it’s profitable for all politicians they consider anyhow important, too.
As someone else put it (my paraphrase): It’s really a gargantuan take-from-the-poor-to-give-to-the-rich scheme.
Oh no! Starmer’s new best friends are liars and cheats! Who’d a think it.
Thunk it.
“British Steel Industry”???
Shouldn’t that be “The Indian Billionaire Steel Industry Formerly Known as British Steel”?
Great photo of Comrade Starmer looking earnest while shaking hands with Grinning Mrs. Vampire.
Indian or Chinese?
Indians bought it first, stole all its technology and built replica factories in India, forced the British Steel staff to train their Indian replacements, and then tried to blame “China”, to whom they later sold it.
All part of our own politicians inviting the world to Asset-Strip the British Isles.
“our own politicians”
They are despicable
They are indeed.
UvdL: I’ve just screwed them over.
Not a friendly smile, is it?
She is a demon, or possessed by one.
Youth mobility isn’t a giveaway. It’s an equal trade for both sides. Young Brits get an easy way into working in the EU. That is good for young Brits.
Why does Starmer clammer so for EU trade and recognition when they obviously hate Britain? Fuck the EU i say!
We need to ditch Net Zero (sense), start making coking coal again and apply tariffs to foreign steel, thus revitalising our domestic production. I work in engineering, and feel completely deflated when I compare the incredible engineering past of this nation to the sorry state it is now.
You are so right, British steel has always been the best in the world, build and make Britain great again in the memory and willpower of the likes of Isambard Kindom Brunel , stop pandering to the rest and return to being the best!
Light the fires, kick the tires and burn, drill and mine big daddy! Drag Britain out of this Doldrum and make it great again!
One of my hero’s was Fred Dibnah!
If EU tariff s are an existential threat then something else must be wrong.
Properly know as Ursula Van der Lying .. whilst the Government of the day sucks up to the EU and continues to allow them and other foreigners to carry off the booty from the defeated UK (that of course includes the stream of remittances from foreigners resident here) we have no hope of solving Britain’s issues. Personally I am sick of being enslaved by tax to fund our destruction.
Ursula fond of Lying.
At school, Smarmer would have been one of those pathetic little curs that gave bullies his pocket money in the hope he could become their friend.
He’s continuing this failed strategy, with taxpayers money, on a grand scale.
I suspect his bullied childhood informed his career choices in an attempt to get revenge on those that he perceives to be the bullies.
If you get into bed with a sake, don’t be surprised if you get bitten. The EU takes our fish, gets to impose it destructive carbon taxes on the UK while attempting to kill the UK steel industry and breaks the Brexit trade agreement.
I didn’t think we had any steel industry left with what mad Ed has and is doing
I thought the UK steel industry was already on its last legs because of the high energy costs?
amid fears that a flood of cheap steel from China and other Asian countries are crushing the Continent’s domestic industries
Usually Fond of Lying and her fellow EU fascists are the ones who are crushing the EU steel industry with their Net Zero policies. Shame the idiot Telegraph journalist can’t see this act of self harm.