Sarah Champion, MP for Rotherham, said new trade measures would protect against cheap, subsidised foreign steel.

The government also wants to see 50 per cent of the steel used in Britain to be made in Britain, up from 30 per cent currently.

The strategy is being seen as a boost to Speciality Steel, which has huge plants in Rotherham and Stocksbridge, and is being run by the government after being put into liquidation last year.

Ms Champion said: “The publication of the Government’s Steel Strategy is a landmark moment for steel production in the UK.”

She added: “(The government’s) commitment to our steel industry, including stepping in to protect steel assets facing closure in Rotherham, has come as a breath of fresh air.

“Our domestic steel industry is not a relic. It is world leading. It has been held back not by the quality of its products, but by a lack of vision in previous governments and a failure to provide the level playing field it needs in order to thrive.

“By taking long overdue trade measures to protect against cheap, subsidised foreign steel, I hope that much needed parity will finally become a reality.”

Urgent action was needed to cut energy prices and reform carbon policies that “risk leaving Chinese steel imports cheaper than low-emission, locally produced steel,” she added.