The British steel industry is dissatisfied with the government’s plan to remove tariffs on imports of various products, calling it a “heavy blow” that may damage the industry in the long term.

A kind initial decision British Steel said that the International Department of International Trade needs to remove a large number of products from “import “safeguard measures” to protect domestic producers from a large number of cheap imported goods. These measures are intended to “urgently consider “.

Lobbying groups say that this decision is the first test of the UK as an independent trading nation after the UK.Bressy It also warned that the removal of protective measures would have an adverse effect on steel manufacturers in Wales and northeast England.

UK Steel general manager Gareth Stace said: “The UK will become a magnet for large amounts of steel imports. There is no need to worry that this may damage the UK steel industry and its long-term viability.”

“This is the first test of the government’s commitment to our steel industry after Brexit, and they are failing.” said Alasdair McDiarmid, director of community operations for the Steel Workers Union.

The safeguard measures set tariff-free quotas for a series of steel products based on import levels between 2013 and 2017. Once the quota threshold is exceeded, the tariff will be applied to all other imported goods within three months. They have existed since the United Kingdom was still a member of the European Union in 2018 and expanded during the Brexit transition period that ended in December.

According to the plan announced on Tuesday, the Bureau of Investigation of the Ministry of Trade Intelligence (DIT keeps a certain distance from the Ministry of Trade) proposed to extend the measures for 10 imported commodities until next month for a period of three years.

It also recommended the withdrawal of measures on nine categories. The agency said that in those categories, it found that there was no domestic production, that the increase in imports was not large enough, or that it was unlikely to cause damage to domestic industry.

UK Steel stated that the removal of the protection measures will adversely affect the production of steel sections in Teesside, pipes in Hartlepool, and wire production in Cardiff, Scunthorpe and Rotherham. It added that these measures are designed to protect “the viability of the entire industry, not the viability of a single production line.”

The industry directly employs more than 33,000 employees in the UK and further supports 42,000 in the supply chain.

The largest steel companies in the UK include Tata Steel, which is located at the Port Talbot plant in Wales, southern Wales. British Steel, which is owned by the Jingye Group of China, operates Liberty Steel, which is owned by the GFG Alliance, at its giant factory in Scunthorpe.

British Steel said it was “very disappointed” and warned that if the plan is accepted, it will “create a major setback for British manufacturers working to help rebuild the British economy.”

UK Steel stated that the inclusion of more complete trade data shows that imports have increased across the board.

Sir Andrew Cook, chairman of the family-owned Sheffield steelmaker William Cook, said that lowering tariffs would hurt British industry, and Chinese producers were already dumping low-quality steel to the UK at a price lower than its cost. .

“Until recently, I got 1 million tons of new Chinese-made steel rails at a minimum price of $150 per ton. This is half of its scrap value. How can Western steel companies compete with this “sell at all costs” behavior? “Cook said.

The company produces railways, tracks and mechanical parts. Cook said that China is trying to create a monopoly by weakening Western manufacturers.

“Sooner or later, once a monopoly is established, China will raise prices.”

Industry stakeholders have 7 days to appeal. The final decision will be made by Liz Truss, Minister of International Trade.