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Editorial comment

Steel workers in the UK are facing a bleak winter period, as job cuts threaten a reported one in six workers. Where once the UK steel industry employed upwards of 200 000 people, that number has reportedly dropped below 30 000 and continues to fall. Most recently, plant closures by SSE and Tata and the financial woes of Caparo could contribute an additional 5000 more to the unemployment line, leaving entire towns to wonder at their future. The blame is apportioned in two key directions: cheap imports from China and the comparatively burdensome price of doing business in the UK.


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Steel workers in the UK are facing a bleak winter period, as job cuts threaten a reported one in six workers. Where once the UK steel industry employed upwards of 200 000 people, that number has reportedly dropped below 30 000 and continues to fall. Most recently, plant closures by SSE and Tata and the financial woes of Caparo could contribute an additional 5000 more to the unemployment line, leaving entire towns to wonder at their future. The blame is apportioned in two key directions: cheap imports from China and the comparatively burdensome price of doing business in the UK.