A union leader has told MPs about his fears for the future of the Corus plant on Teesside.

The Iron and Steel Trades Confederation's (ISTC) Michael Leahy was giving evidence to the House of Commons Trade and Industry Committee, which is looking at the future of the UK steel industry.

In a written submission to the hearing, the union blamed the "arrogance and ignorance" of Corus management for the company's present difficulties.

Though the company's Redcar plant escaped job cuts, it has been told it must now sell its products on the world market, rather than internally to other divisions of Corus.

Mr Leahy was asked by committee member Ashok Kumar, Labour MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, whether he thought the plant would survive.

The ISTC general secretary said the coke needed to make the steel at Redcar was not being made internally in enough quantities by Corus. This would mean using coke bought on the open market at £80 a ton rather than £45.

"We are sceptical as to the company's overall strategy and whether or not this announcement was a death sentence that has been postponed for three years."

He told the hearings that while he was "not calling for the nationalisation of Corus" it needed to borrow 1.4bn Euros to stay afloat.

If Corus cannot borrow the money, then the Government should step in to offer guarantees for loans, he said.

Mr Leahy said: ''Corus is of strategic importance to manufacturing in the United Kingdom. The Government needs to intervene in these circumstances to ensure that Corus continues to operate."

He said management should shoulder the blame for the job losses, in particular the decision to offer shareholders £700m when it was created out of the merger of British Steel and Hoogovens of Holland.

''Much of what has happened has been self inflicted,'' he said.