PRICE OF STEEL IN THE UK

That this House is aware that in 2006 the price of finished steel in the UK market stood at around £350 per tonne, a price which then escalated over the following two and a half years to around £900 per tonne to UK customers; notes that at the onset of the current financial crisis, at a time when the British economy suffered negative growth, in particular in areas such as the construction industries whose activities had fallen by 60 per cent., and other parts of the manufacturing sectors who had experienced downturns in their businesses of around 45 per cent. it is not surprising that suddenly steel prices in the UK fell back to around £450 per tonne; further notes with alarm that, amid a number of allegations of price fixing by the industry, since 2008 steel prices have already risen by around 50 per cent. with further increases projected over the next few months, indicating once again a return to unsustainable charges for UK manufacturers; and calls on the Government to enquire of the steel industry its explanation and justification of such huge increases at a time when UK businesses are still having to cope with the worldwide effects of the recession.