Unions have raised fears that thousands of jobs are under threat after a winding up order was filed against Liberty Steel.
HM Revenue & Customs has issued a winding up petition following the collapse of Greensill Capital – the main lender to GFG Alliance, the group which includes Liberty Steel.
The petition is part of discussions over repayments to creditors, which unions fear could force Liberty into insolvency.
Liberty Steel is the UK's third-largest steelmaker, employing 3,000 people at 11 sites, with another 2,000 people in engineering businesses within the group.
It owns several sites across the UK, including a plant at Dalzell in Scotland which manufactures steel plate.
A spokesperson for the Community, Unite and GMB unions said: “This action by HMRC threatens thousands of jobs and is a devastating blow to our members and their families.
“Liberty Steel is a strategically important business, crucial to delivering net zero, and under no circumstances can our plants be allowed to close.
“The trade unions call on GFG and HMRC to get back round the table and hammer out a deal that provides space for the company to refinance.
“The best route to protect jobs and repay HMRC and other creditors would be to enable the business to continue to trade.
“The government has an important role to play in providing that framework and must take urgent action to address our unaffordable energy prices.
“GFG is the owner and we hold them accountable for their actions, but as we have always said, government must be ready to step in should that be required.”
Willie Rennie, the former Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, called for assurances over Liberty Steel winding-up petition
“I am very anxious about what this could mean for the jobs at Liberty Steel’s plants at Dalzell and Clydebridge - the workers at the plant are dedicated and don’t deserve to be caught up in the financial swamp of GFG Alliance.
“We need urgent clarification from the Scottish Government as to what this could mean for the employees.
“We also need clarity on what this could mean for taxpayers as a result of the disputed multi million pound guarantee which the Scottish Government signed to facilitate the sale of the plants to Liberty Steel, part of the GFG Alliance.”
An HMRC spokesperson said: “We take a supportive approach to dealing with customers who have tax debts, working with them to find the best possible solution based on their financial circumstances.”
A Liberty Steel spokesman said: “Our priority has been to protect thousands of jobs in the UK. We are committed to repaying all our creditors and continue to work with all stakeholders around the UK to create a sustainable future for our businesses following the collapse of Greensill Capital.
“Against a very challenging backdrop in the UK with record high energy prices and imports we have provided tens of millions in funding to keep our people in employment and maintain operations to serve customers and strategic supply chains while we complete our refinancing.
“We are in continuous dialogue with all our creditors including HMRC to find an amicable solution that’s in the best interest of all stakeholders - short term actions that risk destabilising these efforts are not in anyone’s interest, and undermine creditor recovery at a critical stage in our debt restructuring efforts that seek to secure the future of our businesses.”
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