Blair pushes for steel deal with US

Tony Blair is privately pushing for an extraordinary pact with the United States to free Britain's steel industry from the punishing tariffs levied on imports to America.

The deal, if it comes off, will allow the Prime Minister to claim a coup which could protect many British jobs. It would go some way to show that his close alliance with President Bush is producing tangible results. But it also threatens to trigger a row with the rest of the EU.

Mr Blair has urged Mr Bush to include steel from Britain in the so-called "product exclusion process". This would exempt imports from Britain from the 30 per cent tariffs slapped on by the US last month.

If the deal does go ahead it will be carried through under the face-saving argument that most of the imports from Britain do not compete with the type of steel manufactured in America.

British sources claimed after the Anglo-US summit in Texas that a possible deal is at an early stage. But Britain's Washington embassy has already been pushing hard behind the scenes.