🔗 Share this article European Union's Proposal to Align With US Steel Tariffs Poses 'Survival Risk' to UK's Steel Industry EU officials declared plans to adopt the United States' steel tariffs, effectively doubling taxes on foreign steel to 50% in a move condemned as "a critical danger" to the sector in Britain. Unprecedented Crisis for UK Steel Exports With 80% of UK steel shipments going to the European Union, this change represents the UK steel industry's biggest ever crisis, according to the lobby group representing the industry. New EU Measures and Rules Through its proposal submitted to the EU legislature this week, the EU executive also proposed reducing the existing quota for tariff-exempt steel and obliging foreign suppliers to declare where the steel was melted and poured to stop China sneaking products in through third nations. EU steel sector stood at the brink of failure – these measures safeguard it so that it can invest, reduce emissions, and regain competitiveness. Overhaul of Existing System These measures are intended to replace a import framework that has been in operation for the last seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now seen as ineffective. Inaction could have been "fatal" for the sector, one EU official stated. Sector Reaction and Concerns However, industry representatives, from the industry body British Steel, said EU increasing duties would pose "the most severe challenge the UK steel industry has encountered". He called on the government to "acknowledge the critical necessity to put in place domestic protections to defend" the UK steel industry – which is affected by a 25% duty imposed by Trump recently – from the threat of millions of tonnes of world steel diverted away from US and European markets. This surge in foreign steel "could be fatal for numerous steel companies. Union and Government Calls Alasdair McDiarmid, representative at steelworkers' union the industry union, stated the proposed changes posed "an existential threat" to UK steel. Labor and business representatives called on the UK government to begin talks immediately with the EU on country-specific tariff exemptions, noting that the United Kingdom was now the EU's primary export market. Industry Background Sector representatives in the EU have also been warning for months that the European steel sector confronts being "eliminated" through the new 50% tariffs on American market shipments combined with rising energy prices and cheap Chinese competition. The steel industry on in both the UK and EU is described as a essential sector, supplying basic materials in products ranging from building frameworks, renewable energy equipment and transport infrastructure to household appliances and cutlery. Adoption and Future Actions The new measures must be agreed by member states and the EU legislature, with the EU executive head calling on national governments and European parliament members to act fast in backing the proposal. If the plan is ratified, the European Union will reduce its current duty-free quota by forty-seven percent to 18.3m tonnes a year, a volume last seen in 2013. It will impose a fifty percent tariff on foreign steel exceeding the limit and require countries shipping to the bloc to declare the production origin to avoid bypassing of the measures. Exemptions and Global Partnerships Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein will not be subject to tariff quotas or duties due to their close trading relationship in the EEA, the EU has confirmed. Alongside the proposal, the EU is seeking a "metals alliance" with the United States to protect their national industries from excess production. The European Union must take immediate action, and firmly, prior to operations cease in significant portions of the European steel sector and its value chains.