Sources at the Department for Business and Trade say the proposals are part of a plan to put the UK steel industry on a greener, more sustainable footing for the future.
Government sources claim that the blast furnace plants are not economic - they are losing £1m a day, they say - and are not “green”, therefore making them unsustainable on financial and environmental grounds.
The government conceded that the plan to close the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe and Port Talbot will leave the UK without the ability to make “virgin steel”.
Roy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community, the specialist trade union representing UK steelworkers, said he was “deeply concerned” by the plans to switch to only electric arc furnaces, which he described as “dangerous and foolhardy”.
Paul Nowak, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, warned: “Workers won’t stand back and watch as Britain’s steel industry is dismantled in real time.”
If you are reading this page and can’t see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk.
The original article contains 784 words, the summary contains 189 words. Saved 76%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!
This is the best summary I could come up with:
Sources at the Department for Business and Trade say the proposals are part of a plan to put the UK steel industry on a greener, more sustainable footing for the future.
Government sources claim that the blast furnace plants are not economic - they are losing £1m a day, they say - and are not “green”, therefore making them unsustainable on financial and environmental grounds.
The government conceded that the plan to close the blast furnaces at Scunthorpe and Port Talbot will leave the UK without the ability to make “virgin steel”.
Roy Rickhuss, general secretary of the Community, the specialist trade union representing UK steelworkers, said he was “deeply concerned” by the plans to switch to only electric arc furnaces, which he described as “dangerous and foolhardy”.
Paul Nowak, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, warned: “Workers won’t stand back and watch as Britain’s steel industry is dismantled in real time.”
If you are reading this page and can’t see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.co.uk.
The original article contains 784 words, the summary contains 189 words. Saved 76%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!