Avoiding Another Redcar : The Decline of Steel Manufacturing in the UK

Whilst Scottish steel manufacturing plants such as those of Motherwell and Clydebridge have been able to avoid closure or the magnitude of devastating consequences attributed to the recent fortunes in the UK steel business – having found a buyer, the steel plant in Redcarr, Teeside has not been so fortunate. Despite current reports of an impending sale, its closure was announced in October 2015, with the loss of 2,200 jobs. With the growing number of closures, loss of jobs, as well as the landscape and livelihoods of entire localities, it is becoming more evident why another closure – particularly such as that of the magnitude and repercussions as that of Port Talbot, needs to be avoided. When do certain industries become of such strategic importance to the economy that they warrant bailouts which are synonymous to those provided to financial and banking institutions – those designated as “Too Big To Fail'? The steel industry being a vital and integral component of the UK economy – contributing 10% to its economic output could be considered to be of strategic economic importance.This paper, the third and final of a series of conference papers, is specifically aimed at highlighting why a demise of the UK steel industry would signify more than just the loss of strategic economic interests