AS a former steelworker for nearly 40 years, I am deeply saddened by

the threat to 700 more Teesside steel jobs

(Echo, May 22).

Teesside is still reeling from the loss of the steelmaking plants back in September 2016 when SSI pulled the plug on nigh on 2,000 jobs.

While the Greybull-owned British Steel main plant is in Scunthorpe with over 4,000 jobs at risk, there are 700 jobs between the Lackenby Beam Mill and Skinningrove Special Profiles in east Cleveland. This loss will almost certainly be the final nails in Teesside's steel heritage, hence some serious longer term strategy is required by government for steel in the UK.

With only two steelmaking plants left in the UK at Scunthorpe and Port Talbot we need to keep this bare minimum in production so that specialist plants like the Beam Mill and Skinningrove can continue. Allowing any more contraction of steelmaking will expose the UK to more foreign manipulation of the steel producing market place.

Past history would suggest the writing is on the wall for the UK steel industry.

George Dunning, Ormesby