Theresa May slammed as 'naive' for failing to block higher tariffs on Chinese steel by EU boss

The EU Commission chief warned failure to protect Europe's steel industries from Chinese dumping would fuel anger
By Jack Blanchard

Brussels boss Jean Claude-Juncker has slammed “naive” Theresa May for blocking higher tariffs on Chinese steel.
The EU Commission chief warned that failure to protect Europe's steel industries from Chinese dumping would fuel populist anger across the continent.
“I cannot accept that the Americans are protecting their industry and we are the naïve guys wanting to charm the others,” he raged.
Mr Juncker was speaking at the end of Mrs May's first EU summit as Prime Minister where she continued to argue that tariffs should not be raised.
The EU Commission and other major steel producers including Germany and France want swingeing US-style trade tariffs to protect their industries from cheap Chinese steel.
Jean-Claude Juncker has slammed Theresa May
But Britain has been blocking reform of the EU's 'lesser duty rule' – which keeps tariffs low - since 2013, despite the near-collapse of the British steel industry and the loss of thousands of jobs.
At the same time Britain supports giving China 'market economy' status within the EU which will allow the Asian giant to carve out even more of the market.
The Mirror revealed that even Mrs May's most trusted Downing Street adviser, chief of staff Nick Timothy, has slammed the lack of high tariffs as “unthinking liberalism”.
Save Our Steel campaign

Mr Juncker said if Europe does not act to protect its steel industry it will pour fuel on the anti-EU anger which has swept across the continent.
“If you want to fight against stupid populism, you have to create the pre-conditions for this fight to be successful,” he said.
“If we are telling the entire world that now China will receive market economy status without us improving our trade defences… then we are preparing the way for populists to attack the European Union.”
Mr Juncker will put forward concrete proposals on reforming the EU's 'trade defences' next month and the row will continue between British and Brussels officials over the coming weeks.
But Mrs May made clear she will not change her stance and said tariffs must be “balanced” to protect firms who buy cheap steel.
“We've had a discussion about the modernisation of trade defence instruments," the PM said as the summit finished.
"What we've agreed around the table is that we look at all of those instruments and we do that in a balanced way.
“And that's what's important. It's important to balance the interests of users, of producers and of consumers.”