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EU officials revealed plans to adopt Donald Trump's steel tariffs, increasing to double taxes on foreign steel to 50% in a action condemned as "an existential threat" to the sector in the UK.

Major Challenge for British Steel Industry

With eighty percent of British exports destined for the EU, this change creates the British steel sector's biggest ever challenge, as stated by the industry association representing the industry.

New EU Proposals and Regulations

In its plan presented to the European parliament on Tuesday, the EU executive additionally suggested reducing the current allowance for duty-free imports and obliging foreign suppliers to declare the origin of steel production to prevent Chinese producers sneaking products in through third nations.

EU steel sector was on the verge of collapse – these measures safeguard it so that it can invest, reduce emissions, and regain competitiveness.

Overhaul of Existing System

These measures are intended to supersede a import framework that has been functioning for the last seven years and which is set to expire in 2026 and is now considered not fit for purpose. Inaction could have been "disastrous" for the sector, a European official said.

Industry Response and Warnings

However, Gareth Stace, from the industry body British Steel, said EU increasing duties would pose "the most severe challenge the British steel sector has encountered".

He called on the government to "acknowledge the critical necessity to implement domestic protections to protect" the British steel sector – which is still reeling from a twenty-five percent tariff from the US recently – from the risk of millions of tonnes of world steel redirected from US and European markets.

This flood of imports "could be fatal for many of our remaining steel companies.

Labor and Government Pressure

Alasdair McDiarmid, representative at steelworkers' union the industry union, stated the proposed changes represented "an existential threat" to UK steel.

Unions and industry leaders called on Keir Starmer to start negotiations immediately with the EU on nation-specific duty-free quotas, noting that the United Kingdom was now the EU's primary trading partner.

Industry Background

Sector representatives in the European Union have repeatedly cautioned for several months that their own industry confronts being "wiped out" through the increased duties on exports to the US along with high energy costs and low-cost Chinese imports.

Steel on both sides of the Channel is described as a foundational industry, providing elemental components in products ranging from building frameworks, renewable energy equipment and railways to household appliances and kitchenware.

Adoption and Future Actions

The new measures require approval by EU nations and the European parliament, with the EU executive head urging national governments and MEPs to act fast in backing the initiative.

Should approval be granted, the European Union will reduce its current duty-free quota by forty-seven percent to 18.3m tonnes a year, a volume previously recorded in 2013. It will impose a fifty percent tariff on foreign steel exceeding the limit and require nations shipping to the bloc to declare where the steel was melted and poured to avoid bypassing of the measures.

Exceptions and Global Partnerships

These European nations will be exempt from import limits or tariffs because of their close trading relationship in the EEA, the EU has confirmed.

Alongside the proposal, the EU is seeking a "steel partnership" with the United States to ringfence their national industries from overcapacity.

EU needs to act now, and decisively, before operations cease in significant portions of the EU steel industry and its value chains.