Chinese steel

[craig3.2]

Unfortunately our government appear happy to see the British steekl industry die off,and allow both Chinese and Swedish steel come in instead
As said,other countries in Europe don't get taxed the same as UK steel industry......
We need to get out of the noose that is Europe,control our own affairs
,stop chucking billions into the eurozone,concentrate on our own affairs for once .....and Support UK Steel,saving jobs, like we have in Scotland , by the otherwise dumb ass SNP , lol.

 

[dans6490]

What ever people's views and feelings on the "why", it's clear something has to be done. Jakblade's story, I would imagine, is one that is replicated throughout the steel towns still left, where the industry is the lifeblood of the community.

As jakblade says, prices change in cycles, it would be very short-sighted to close the plants based on the here and now. As soon as the Chinese or whichever emerging nation start using masses of steel, the situation could change again.

One thing I'm sure everyone agrees on, is that we can't allow the last steel producers in the UK to be closed. It would be an absolute disaster!!

The government can and should be doing more, only they can do something and absolutely should do everything in their power to help.

The very fact that "British" Gas is foreign owned is an example of the ridiculous situation here in the UK. One of our customers recently moved to the Czech Republic and the guys losing their jobs were paid to go and train their replacements over there! How we have reached this situation I just don't know. The owner, who was retiring, just sold out to the highest bidder! Knowledge, skills, experience all gone and an all too familiar story.

All of this is not new but it's been like a dripping tap, slowly happening for years and is sadly the tip of the iceberg.

 

[stuartC]

..... I do not know what is going to happen but if the Scunthorpe Works were to close the town will be devastated . It means so much to the whole community and the amount of other businesses that what be affected is unthinkable from the small engineering firms, contract manpower companies, plant hire companies down to the butty wagons, cafe's and newsagents that pick up passing trade from Steelworkers on their way to/from work .

Just a little addition on a personal note, There has been a member of my family working on these Steelworks since the 1870's my Great Great Grandad came here from South Wales to work on the "New Steelworks". So it looks like we maybe here from beginning to end. I hope not...

If you've taken the time to read this.........thankyou....

+1 good post jakblade, like many others on here

Lived in sunny Scunny for a few years back in the mid-90's. Didn't work in the steel industry, but it was (and presumably still is) completely in-grained in the place; pretty much everyone I knew had friends & relatives in the industry. Hope it all works out.. but I can't see any political party or government lifting a finger 'cause Scunthorpe & Wales are bit too far from London.

The only way a politician will go out of his or her way to help is if it hits them directly in their tax avoiding trust funds.

 

[mmm-five]

This is not a new thing, and the end has been nigh for over 30 years. The 'solutions' that have been tried over those years have only delayed the inevitable.

I've worked in the steel industry a couple of times - but as a part of a management consultancy team going in to sort supply chain or IT issues.

I've been at in Corby, Llanwern, Rotherham, Port Talbot, Ebbw Vale and Shotton (at various times, under their various incarnations - British Steel, Corus, Tata).

At one point in the 90s, the suggestion was to buy the cheap Turkish steel and re-process it as it was cheaper to buy that and import it than it was for us to buy in the raw materials.

Turkey thought they'd cornered the market until the Chinese came along with their huge excess capacity.

 

[dans6490]

This is not a new thing, and the end has been nigh for over 30 years. The 'solutions' that have been tried over those years have only delayed the inevitable.

I've worked in the steel industry a couple of times - but as a part of a management consultancy team going in to sort supply chain or IT issues.

I've been at in Corby, Llanwern, Rotherham, Port Talbot, Ebbw Vale and Shotton (at various times, under their various incarnations - British Steel, Corus, Tata).

At one point in the 90s, the suggestion was to buy the cheap Turkish steel and re-process it as it was cheaper to buy that and import it than it was for us to buy in the raw materials.

Turkey thought they'd cornered the market until the Chinese came along with their huge excess capacity.

Totally agree, it's been a steady slide to the bottom, for various reasons, over the years, that sees us at this point. It's not like it was profitable last year and now its not. Haven't TATA been losing £1m A DAY! or something stupid for the last god knows how many years in the UK.

It's a disaster for the entire country that we are in this position, I just hope something can be done to save it.

 

[jakblade]

Bloody typical.........Was reading today that the Chinese have imposed a 46% import tariff on specialist steels made at Port Talbot, also found this article......

Government dismisses fears over Chinese steel import tariffs
3 hours ago
The government has dismissed fears over China's move to impose a 46.3% tariff on some types of steel, despite the crisis in the UK industry.
Ministers say the new levy, on imports of some specialist, high-tech steel, will have only a limited impact.

It also appears the our Government didn't want to impose any import tariffs on Chinese Steel and was the EU who imposed the current 9-13% duty. This was apparently due to not wanting to upset the Chinese over the deal recently struck about the Chinese building Nuclear power Stations here.

Tata are also in negotiations with ThyssenKrupp in Germany about a merger deal and one of the terms to appropriate this deal was for Tata exit it UK Steel operations.......
What a crock!!!!!

Looks like this Government is not only not willing to assist the UK Steel Industry but would appear to be doing all it can to assist in it's demise.

 

[ronk]

You have to remember that they are politicians and only interested in their own wants and needs !
Way to many cloak and dagger / closed door deals - and that applies to all parties at national and local levels !

 

[skelters]

You may not have heard this due to the right wing anti SNP media...

Tata Scottish steel works rescued by Liberty House with a bit of help from the SNP Government
http://www.snp.org/securing_a_bright_future_for_scottish_steel_plants
http://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/mar/24/tata-scottish-steel-works-rescued-by-liberty-house


Maybe you should be asking why it's taking so long for the Tories to get their finger out of each others arses to pretend to do something about Tata Steel. Contact your MP to find out why?!

Is it because they're not in the south of England and therefore probably wouldn't vote Tory anyway?

Bankers were bailed out why not the Steel Industry. Why not change things for the benefit of the working man. Oh that's right, they're Tories and they don't care about anything but themselves.

The whole steel thing is smoke and mirrors as they want out of Europe at all costs. They will ramp up the propaganda to crazy levels prior to the EU vote. Wait and see. We seen it here in Scotland pre Indyref1.

Even before they get out of Europe (estimated 10 years) all hell will break loose with this shower of inbred deviants. Death of the NHS, Human rights act, snooping, TTIP, you name it then it will happen all in the name of greed. But they'll cover it all up by probably going to war with Argentina for the Falklands to distract you.

But you get what you vote for don't you.

When you think about it could be that a German Owned Steel Plant may provide steel to build a Chinese designed (and partly owned) Nuclear Power Station built and owned by the French.

Sit back and watch your energy costs rise to pay for French power while French power costs drop and the Tories continue to borrow billions and blame it all on the poor.

But at least there'll always be an England, bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover, 1966 and all that, we won the war!

That's what you get for voting Tory. They are taking you all for mugs and they know it.

Wake up England.

They are all cunts.

 

[jakblade]

I indeed did hear about the Scottish government aiding in the procurement of steel plants in Scotland, Skelters . I also think ALL Politicians are only in it for their own egotistical selves. I for one did not vote for the bunch of self prophetic morons in "charge" of this Country today.
What does the future hold? I don't know but what I do know is the deep concern I have for my kids futures...........

 

[philz4]

Cameron has his dinner with them saying we should talk about this steel dumping from you and when they finished the dinner they slapped a 40% tarrif on our high quality steel. He will let that go too as he wants there money for a new nuclear pwr stn that isn,t going to be safe !

We should all refuse to buy there crap and get some home industry back in this country ,get a decent living wage and and save on benefits for doing nothing. The daily mail wrote a good article on Friday ,did you know our gdp is worse than 1948 ( 98 billion ) what bullshit this goverment is feeding us.

 

[BRC]

Regretfully we are slowly but surely "replacing" our manufacturing industry with so called service industries. I drive onto so many "industrial estates" when in practice they should be re-named "warehouse estates", sad but true. I'm currently in the process of handing over my business area to a younger man and frankly I really feel for him given he's got all the attendant costs of someone just starting out. He's going to find it infinitely harder to make his mark because there simply isn't the business to be had. Gone are the days when I could walk into manufacturing site and leave with an order for literally 10's of thousands without breaking a sweat. So if that was then and not now where does the money come from to support service industries. It's left me scratching my head many a time when I see an area devoid of any industry and yet the local retail parks are humming! Where does the money come from to support that? I hear that we are all paupers and yet I see brand new cars being driven by 20 something's, I see new housing being built as fast as it can and then immediately occupied by someone or another with the attendant new car(s) on the drive, I'm told the average UK resident has naff all in the bank and an average pension pot of £38k and yet I see many pensioners living the life of Riley. I see our local council crowing about the fact they have only put up council tax by 1.99% and in the same breathe tell me that year on and yet again the have found £50 million pound. Interestingly they never tell me from where! Our local town council spends £350K on nobody knows what and still demands more each year and usually well above any inflation salary increase I received. Things just never quite add up to me. I'm quietly convinced we are all living a lie and the day of financial reckoning will come.