I didn't actually give a position on that, I merely pointed out that we imported far more from the EU than we did from China in 2014.
My unsubtle implication was that to protect Port Talbot would've required us to have 'trade defence instruments' against the EU.
Unlike the EU I'm bothered by the UK's steel industry. The EU is by definition a single market and couldn't care less where steel is produced as long as it's within the EU. As far as EU-wide institutions go zero poops given regarding UK steel. They would be perfectly content it we didn't have any steel production as long as we import from the EU.
I'd recommend a read of the below from Business Insider UK and the Grauniad. Cutting off Chinese steel overnight still leaves cheaper European steel available for our manufacturers to buy. Guess what they are going to do?
http://uk.businessinsider.com/uk-ste...-prices-2016-3
https://www.theguardian.com/business...steel-industry
A bit of weakness on the part of the pound to make European steel more expensive might be good.
It also looks as though our issues are far more home-grown given the big drop in our production relative to Germany, Sweden, et al. Noteworthy also is that we buy more steel from Germany or Spain alone than the entire continent of Asia. Fine from the EU perspective, from the UK one not so much.
On another note I do love that term 'trade defence instruments'.
On a UK, not EU, level, I'd say rather than making Chinese steel more expensive we would be far better off making our own steel more competitive. Port Talbot doesn't just compete with dumped Chinese steel but with German, Spanish, Swedish, etc, steel.