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EU officials have announced plans to adopt Donald Trump's import duties on steel, increasing to double levies on foreign steel to 50% in a decision condemned as "an existential threat" to the sector in Britain.

Unprecedented Crisis for UK Steel Industry

Given that 80% of British exports destined for the EU, this policy shift creates the British steel sector's biggest ever challenge, according to the industry association representing the industry.

European Commission Proposals and Regulations

In its plan presented to the EU legislature this week, the EU executive additionally suggested cutting the existing quota for tariff-exempt steel and requiring foreign suppliers to declare where the steel was melted and poured to prevent China diverting exports through other countries.

EU steel sector stood at the brink of failure – these measures safeguard it so that it can invest, decarbonise, and regain competitiveness.

Replacement of Current Framework

The proposals are designed to replace a import framework that has been functioning for the past seven years and which is due to expire in 2026 and is now considered ineffective. Inaction could have been "disastrous" for the sector, a European official said.

Industry Reaction and Concerns

Nevertheless, industry representatives, head of the trade association UK Steel, stated Brussels increasing duties would create "the biggest crisis the British steel sector has ever faced".

There were calls for the UK authorities to "recognise the critical necessity to implement domestic protections to defend" the British steel sector – which is still reeling from a 25% duty imposed by the US earlier this year – from the risk of millions of tonnes of world steel redirected from US and European markets.

This surge in foreign steel "might prove terminal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Union and Government Pressure

Alasdair McDiarmid, assistant general secretary at steelworkers' union Community, said the new measures posed "an existential threat" to UK steel.

Unions and industry leaders called on Keir Starmer to begin talks urgently with the EU on nation-specific tariff exemptions, pointing out that the United Kingdom was now the EU's primary trading partner.

Broader Context

Sector representatives in the EU have repeatedly cautioned for several months that their own industry confronts being "eliminated" through the new 50% tariffs on exports to the US along with high energy costs and low-cost Chinese imports.

Steel on in both the UK and EU is described as a foundational industry, supplying elemental components in products ranging from skyscraper structures, renewable energy equipment and transport infrastructure to household appliances and cutlery.

Implementation and Next Steps

These proposals must be agreed by EU nations and the European parliament, with the European Commission president calling on national governments and MEPs to move quickly in backing the initiative.

If the plan is ratified, the EU will cut its current duty-free quota by forty-seven percent to 18.3 million tons a year, a volume last seen in 2013. It will apply a fifty percent duty on foreign steel beyond the quota and require nations shipping to the bloc to declare where the steel was melted and poured to avoid bypassing of the measures.

Exemptions and International Cooperation

These European nations will be exempt from import limits or duties due to their strong economic ties in the European Economic Area, the European Union has confirmed.

In addition to these measures, the EU is pursuing a "steel partnership" with the US to protect their national industries from overcapacity.

The European Union needs to act now, and firmly, prior to all lights go out in large parts of the European steel sector and its supply networks.