In Britain, warnings are being issued about the threat to business posed by new steel import quotas

The British Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCC) has called on the government to urgently review the planned changes to the quota and tariff system for steel imports, which are due to come into force on 1 July 2026. The organisation has warned that the new regime will place significant financial and logistical pressure on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) operating in steel-consuming sectors. This is reported by Eurometal.

The UK’s restrictions are significantly tougher than the new EU measures, under which duty-free quotas will be cut by 47 per cent from 1 July. This puts local companies at a competitive disadvantage.

In May, the BCC sent a letter to the Minister for Business and Trade, Peter Kyle, highlighting the risks to the construction, engineering and manufacturing sectors. These sectors are critically dependent on imports, as the UK’s domestic production (2.6 million tonnes) covers only 30 per cent of annual demand, which stands at 10.3 million tonnes. By comparison, the EU is almost entirely self-sufficient.

William Bain, Head of Trade Policy at the BCC, noted that once the quotas are exhausted, companies will face losses running into millions. Some firms have already stated that they will be unable to operate under such conditions or will be forced to relocate to the EU.

To mitigate the crisis, the BCC is calling on the government to scale back the quota cuts and either reduce or phase in the 50% tariff, extend the transitional concessions for orders from 3 to 12 months, and publish a full assessment of the reform’s impact on consumer industries.

The BCC emphasises that the only long-term solution to the problem is for the UK and the EU to reach an agreement on the abolition of tariffs on steel trade and the allocation of specific quotas for the UK within the EU’s quota system.

It should be noted that, from 1 July this year, the volume of UK steel import quotas will be reduced by 60 per cent compared with current arrangements, whilst tariffs on imports exceeding the quota will rise from 25 per cent to 50 per cent. This move follows similar decisions by the EU, the US and Canada.