Teesside steelworkers take fight to save industry to the EU
Around 500 Tata Steel employees are expected on a march today, calling for fairer trading conditions.
Hundreds of Tata steelworkers, including some from Teesside, are descending on the European Parliament today in a bid to save the UK industry.
They're being led by Tata Steel Europe boss Dr Karl Koehler on a march in Brussels, calling for fair trade and a more competitive level playing field.
Dr Koehler said: “The situation facing Tata Steel and other European steel makers today is perilous.
"If the European Commission does not take immediate and robust action, thousands of jobs in the industry - and many thousands more in the wider supply chain - will be threatened."
Workers from the Netherlands and France will join UK workers after a downturn in the price of European steel caused by an influx of cheap foreign imports.
Thousands of jobs have been lost across the UK in recent months, with many firms struggling to compete with Chinese import prices.
John Stead is one of the workers from our region who'll be travelling to Brussels on Monday morning.
He works alongside his father at Tata's Hartlepool site, where 60 jobs are due to be axed.
He said: "The mood across the workforce is pretty deflated, but we're just trying to battle through it.
"People that we speak to know we work at the steelworks and they show their support.
"They agree with what we're doing and that we need these sanctions putting in place.
"We just need the European Union and the British government stand up and help us save the industry.
"The industry is fighting for survival."
Recent EU plans to put taxes on cheap Chinese steel was met with criticism by some UK politicians.
Yorkshire MEP Amjad Bashir called the plans to impose taxes of up to 13 per cent 'too little too late'.