The steel industry would be far more vulnerable to attacks from other countries if the UK was to leave the European Union, the Secretary of State for Business has warned.

Sajid Javid, who has declared he will support David Cameron and campaign to remain within the EU, cautioned of the dangers the under-threat industry would face in the case of a Brexit.

In a Commons debate over the crisis affecting the UK steel industry, former Tory environment minister Christopher Chope asked: "You say that you would not accept the charge that the Government is not doing all that it can but does he not agree that if we weren't in the European Union, the Government would be able to do a heck of a lot more?"

The Herald: MP: Christopher Chope

Mr Javid replied: "Even if that were the case, we would still be bound by (working time regulations) and it's also quite possible we would be far more open to retaliation by other countries as well."

Labour warned that Chancellor George Osborne's "infatuation" with China risks destroying the UK steel industry.

Shadow business secretary Angela Eagle insisted the UK Government needs to turn "warm sympathetic words" into effective action to stop the "tsunami" of steel being dumped on overseas markets by Chinese producers.

She said: "The Opposition motion therefore calls on the Government to stop using the European Union as an excuse for their own inaction, and it asks them to support a more effective response to the dumping of Chinese steel, which threatens to decimate UK steel production."

Ms Eagle added: "I think what we're facing here with imports of Chinese steel is clearly unfair.

"Dumping is unfair and it's threatening the very existence of the UK steel industry and everyone in this House knows that once those facilities have gone they cannot easily be put back.

"So we know that we have to protect the capacity of our industry in our country to exist and perhaps do better in future when world conditions change.

"And if we don't bear that in mind we will lose the lot and we will regret it."

Ms Eagle said China only meets one of the five criteria required for it to receive market economy status.

She told MPs: "The UK Government supports granting market economy status to China as early as the end of this year.

"Why is this? We already know that the Chancellor continues to be almost embarrassingly desperate to be China's new best friend but he must not pursue his infatuation so far that it excuses their unfair trade practices.

"Granting market economy status to China in the absence of important safeguards would significantly diminish the capacity of the European Union to guard against Chinese dumping and it has the potential to destroy the UK industry.

"Therefore it must not be granted until the criteria are objectively met."

Opening his remarks, Mr Javid recognised recent months have been "absolutely devastating" for the UK steel industry while the global industry faces "unprecedented" challenges which he argued are beyond the control of any one organisation.

He said: "We do believe under the existing rules the EU can go further and it must.

"If the dumping margin under the lesser duty rule is 50% but a duty of 30% is sufficient to remove the harm to industry from that dumping then the duty is set at 30%.

"The tariffs recently imposed on Chinese rebar were indeed too low and I am continuing to raise the issue in my regular discussions with Brussels as I did, for example, just last week when I met the EU trade commissioner in London."