UK Steel comment on SSI announcement

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21st September 2015

Source: EEF

Commenting on the announcement by SSI of a halt in production, Gareth Stace, Director UK Steel, said: "This is an extremely worrying development. It comes just 24 hours after the Government agreed to hold a crisis summit about the UK steel industry and this cannot happen soon enough. I trust ministers will put in place the machinery to get on with this as a priority and that they will bring tangible offers of support. The time for warm words has passed.

“I am pleased that the Business Minister, Anna Soubry, has said in Parliament that she and the Chancellor will make representations to the Chinese Government about the issue of Chinese steel being dumped in the European market, when they visit China next week.

“There are other measures the Government can take now to help ease the problems facing the entire UK steel industry. If they don’t act decisively, then the damage to one of the most important industries underpinning our entire manufacturing sector will be irreversible.

“In the short-term we need a clear indication from Government that it will honour its commitment to compensate steel and other energy intensive industries from the cripplingly high cost of energy – and to do so earlier than April next year. Failure to do so could mark a potentially disastrous tipping point for the industry.

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