Downing Street has insisted the UK is not being strung along by Donald Trump as US tariffs on British steel imports remain in place weeks after Sir Keir Starmer first promised they would be removed.
US President Mr Trump and Prime Minister Sir Keir signed off a US-UK deal that will slash trade barriers on goods from both countries at the G7 on Monday.
But US tariffs for the steel industry remain at 25%, with no certainty on whether they will be eliminated next month or double to 50% in line with other countries.
The two leaders pledged to “make progress towards 0% tariffs on core steel products as agreed”, the Department for Business and Trade said.
But the executive order signed by Mr Trump suggests the US wants further assurances about the UK steel industry.
“The United Kingdom also committed to working to meet American requirements on the security of the supply chains of steel and aluminium products intended for export to the United States and on the nature of ownership of relevant production facilities,” the order states.
After signing it, Mr Trump was asked whether steel tariffs would be eliminated, to which he replied: “We’re gonna let you have that information in a little while.”
The UK-US economic prosperity deal was agreed in general terms on May 8 and Mr Trump’s executive order begins to put it in place.
Downing Street said the deal with Mr Trump had already spared the UK from being hit with the global 50% tariff on steel and aluminium from June 4.
But it could be a temporary reprieve, with Mr Trump setting July 9 as the date to decide whether to proceed with the agreement to reduce tariffs to 0% or to increase them to the global 50% rate.
“We’re continuing to work with the US to ensure the agreement to remove the 25% tariffs on UK steel and aluminium can be implemented as soon as possible and in the best interests of UK industry,” a No 10 spokesman said.
But when put to him that the UK could not guarantee tariffs would not rise to 50%, the spokesman said: “The president’s reaffirmed the intention to continue working on the Section 232 tariff on steel and aluminium.
“Due to the economic prosperity deal, the UK was the only country to be made exempt from the 50% tariffs on steel, aluminium the countries around the world now face.”
Asked if the UK is being “strung along” by Mr Trump, the spokesman said: “I don’t accept that.”
In April, the UK Government used emergency powers to take control of British Steel and continue production at the site after Chinese owners Jingye proposed shutting the Scunthorpe site’s two blast furnaces and other key steelmaking operations.
But its future is still uncertain, with Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander saying the Government is eager for it to be “part of a commercially-operated business with private investment”.
She told Sky News: “We’re talking to a number of third parties about that. At the moment, no options are off the table.”
She said there is still “more work to do” to get steel tariffs eliminated, including on “technical detail”.
The minister told BBC Breakfast: “We’re working through some technical detail around steel because we want to bring that 25% tariff that applies at the moment obviously down further.”
She said the UK is “working on getting that implemented”, adding: “We’re determined to go further and we’ll be working on those issues around steel in the coming days, weeks and months.”
Alasdair McDiarmid, assistant general secretary of the Community union, said it is “absolutely vital” to secure a deal on steel as quickly as possible.
“Our steel producers and their US customers need an end to the current state of uncertainty to allow normal business to resume,” he said.
“Crucially, we must see a full exemption for all UK steel exports to the US – without that guarantee some of our leading steel businesses could be left behind, with a threat to jobs and livelihoods.”
It comes as a £500 million five-year deal was struck between Network Rail and British Steel, which Ms Alexander described as a “vote of confidence”.
British Steel is to supply 337,000 tonnes of rail track, with a further 80-90,000 tonnes to be provided by other European manufacturers.
The Network Rail contract will start on July 1 and is set to provide the company with 80% of its rail needs.
Jingye, which bought British Steel in 2020, launched a consultation in March which it said would affect between 2,000 and 2,700 jobs, despite months of negotiations and a £500 million co-investment offer from the Government.
The Scunthorpe plant has been producing steel for Britain’s railways since 1865.
The Network Rail agreement is the first major public procurement since the Government’s emergency legislation was passed.
Network Rail’s group director for railway business services Clive Berrington said: “We are committed to buying British where it makes economic sense to do so and British Steel remain extremely competitive in the provision of rail and will remain our main supplier in the years ahead.”