09/06/2026
Our CSR & Community engagement Manager explained the upcoming steel tariffs with fruit and yes, it is as bananas as it sounds!
"I'll Start with a confession. As those of you who know me are well aware, I’m NOT a metal expert. I know I’m not alone in that, even within this industry. Especially when like me your role sits more in the periphery.
I often joke I get to do the “fun” stuff at West Special Fasteners. But the reality is that “fun” stuff, and everything else behind it could be at risk if things continue the way they are.
There is a huge issue facing the steel industry right now, and honestly its quite frightening. What surprises me most is how little its being talked about in the mainstream. My only guess is its complex ( and in some ways hard to believe) if you’re not directly involved.
So this is me, a most definite non expert, speaking to other non experts, in the hope of breaking it down and explaining why this matters so much to SMEs across the country.
In simple terms, imagine your doing your weekly shop.
The government decides to support British farmers by limiting how much food supermarkets can import without extra charges. Fair enough.
But actually, some of the items on your shopping list aren’t grown in the UK. Like bananas
Now imagine that once that shop hits its quota, that banana suddenly costs you 50% more. Not because there’s a British alternative available today, but because there might be one in the future if production could scale up.
That’s essentially what’s happening with steel.
From 1st July. New trade measures will significantly reduce how much steel can be imported tariff free. The quotas are being cut around 60% meaning anything above that faces a 50% tariff.
I understand the intention makes sense on paper: protect UK steelmaking and rebuild domestic production.
But not all steel is the same, what happens if the materials you need that are used for specific critical applications, such as defence, just aren’t made in the UK, or at least not in the volumes needed. In the same way you cant simply buy British Bananas to avoid the tariff, you cant just buy British Super Duplex Stainless Steel UNS S32760 if the product isn’t here in the first place. These specialist materials risk being treated exactly the same as other grades of steel, meaning increased costs despite there being no domestic alternative.
If this matters to you (and it should) There are things you can do
Sign the petition below
Write to your local MP
Or simply share this post so others can understand what’s happening."
*banana for scale and Super Duplex UNS S32760 which also isn't grown in Britain.......
