{"id":7714,"date":"2016-02-11T17:10:02","date_gmt":"2016-02-11T17:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=7714"},"modified":"2016-02-12T12:18:06","modified_gmt":"2016-02-12T12:18:06","slug":"tories-volte-face-steel-shame","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=7714","title":{"rendered":"Tories\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 volte-face steel shame"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>\n

The UK has been haemorrhaging steel jobs over the last seven months \u00e2\u20ac\u201c by the latest count, more than 5,000 posts have been axed as the steel industry teeters on the brink of total collapse.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The government has repeatedly said that it will step in and support the industry.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Only last Friday<\/a> (February 6), business secretary Sajid Javid joined leaders of seven other European countries in signing a letter to the European Council calling for “swift and appropriate measures\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 against Chinese and Russian dumping of cheap steel exports \u00e2\u20ac\u201c one of the main drivers of the steel crisis in the UK and across Europe.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But not even a week later, in a stunning about-face, Javid admitted (February 10) that the UK government had blocked European member proposals that would definitively tackle the Chinese imports that are crushing the domestic steel industry.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

In the proposals, which would have entailed scrapping a regulation known as the \u00e2\u20ac\u015blesser duty rule\u00e2\u20ac\u0165,<\/a> European member states would have been able to significantly hike tariffs on Chinese steel imports, so allowing domestic producers to compete on a level playing field.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

EU tariffs on imported steel currently stand at only 9 per cent \u00e2\u20ac\u201c far below the 66 per cent that critics have said is necessary to combat Chinese steel dumping.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But Javid said the UK government blocked this proposal because it would amount to protectionism.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bI think to go further, much further, might sort of, in the short term, sound like a way to go to try and protect a certain industry,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. But we also have to remember that in the UK, as well as manufacturers of steel, there are also companies that consume steel as part of their production process, and the impact that might have on to them.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0098Unfairly protect\u00e2\u20ac\u2122<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Prime minister David Cameron also said that scrapping regulations to hike tariffs would unfairly protect the domestic steel industry.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Labour MP for Cardiff West Kevin Brennan recently highlighted the government\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s duplicitousness in the New Statesman.<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThe government will trumpet forthcoming anti-dumping measures against China as their doing, but in truth they have been leading a blocking minority in the EU, to stop the reform of trade defence measures to allow stronger action against Chinese dumping,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bAt the same time the government has been falling over itself to persuade the EU to grant Market Economy Status to China, which would prevent action in future to stop dumping.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Meanwhile, across the Atlantic, the US \u00e2\u20ac\u201c usually thought to be the world\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s foremost proponent of laissez faire economics \u00e2\u20ac\u201c has swiftly moved to protect its own steel industry against Chinese imports.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

As cheap foreign steel has hurtled through UK borders at tariffs below 10 per cent, the US department of commerce announced in December<\/a> that it would sharply increase tax on Chinese steel imports \u00e2\u20ac\u201c to 256 per cent<\/em>.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

The anger felt among UK steelworkers at the government\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s continued inaction rose to a high point following yesterday\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s news that the government rejected a straightforward proposal well within its grasp to combat Chinese steel dumping.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhen we hear what happened yesterday \u00e2\u20ac\u201c that the UK government were the ringleaders in making sure that tariffs aren\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t raised \u00e2\u20ac\u201c we feel let down, disappointed and lied to,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 said Unite rep Charlotte Upton, a Scunthorpe steelworker.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThey said they were going to stand up for steel, that they knew it was a keystone industry for the British people and then they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re words are not followed through with action.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Just looking <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bMy MP asked David Cameron how he was standing up for steel last week in Parliament and Cameron just gave a series of non-answers,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she added. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bHe said \u00e2\u20ac\u0098we are looking <\/em>at public procurement, we are looking<\/em> tariff charges\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 and so on. They\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re looking at them but they\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re not doing anything about it.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Her comments were echoed\u00c2\u00a0by fellow rep Martin Foster. He said, \u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt is absolutely disgraceful that the government has broken its promises to take action against Chinese steel dumping,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt totally undermines what they have been saying it will do to support the steel industry. And this lack of support means that the government is not only turning its back on steel, it\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s turning its back on manufacturing and the future prosperity of the wider UK economy.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Up at Shotton in North Wales the news was met with \u00e2\u20ac\u015babsolute astonishment.”<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite’s Les Price said, “Sajid Javid has shown a savage and brutal disregard for our steel industry. This action represents his and the governments utter contempt for steelworkers in this country, their families and the communities they live in.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

“His incomprehensible stance on blocking the EU from taking stronger action against the dumping of cheap Chinese imports will suffocate our industry and condemn our very existence. This decision must be challenged and Javid must be compelled to explain his decision in the public domain.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite rep Darren Webster, a steelworker from Rotherham, says he has all but given up.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bTo be honest, I didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t expect anything different from the government,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he said. \u00e2\u20ac\u015bHad the steel industry been a bank or part of financial services, then the Prime Minister would have taken action.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt was obvious to me from the beginning that the government had no intention of helping us,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he added.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s deeply disappointing that steel is going the way of mining and it didn\u00e2\u20ac\u2122t have to be this way \u00e2\u20ac\u201c the government was well within its power to help.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Unite national officer Harish Patel slammed the government too for its persistent inaction while other countries have stepped in.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bWhen will the penny drop with government ministers that a strategically important part of the UK economy faces wipe out because of their continued failure to take decisive and swift action?\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 he demanded.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u015bIt dropped years ago with countries like Germany and the USA who support their steel industry, but has so far failed to do so with minsters here in the UK.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The UK has been haemorrhaging steel jobs over the last seven months \u00e2\u20ac\u201c by the latest count, more than 5,000 posts have been axed as the steel industry teeters on the brink of total collapse.   The government has repeatedly said that it will step in and support the industry.   Only last Friday (February […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[17],"tags":[430,269,44],"wps_subtitle":"When did fighting for a nation\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s future become \u00e2\u20ac\u0098protectionism\u00e2\u20ac\u2122?","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7714"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7714"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7714\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7721,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7714\/revisions\/7721"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7714"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7714"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7714"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}