Pressure is mounting on the Government to tackle China over its aggressive steel pricing policy after steel giant Tata confirmed 1,170 people will be laid off at its UK sites.

The brunt of the cuts at the Indian-owned firm will be borne in Scunthorpe, where 900 posts will go.

The rest of the redundancies will be at its plants in Dalzell and Clydebridge in Scotland, bringing steelmaking in Scotland to an end after 143 years.

The news comes a day after it was confirmed 1,700 jobs were in jeopardy at UK-based Caparo Industries and follows the announcement that SSI in Redcar, Teesside, is to be closed with the loss of 2,200 jobs.

It brings the job losses confirmed to 3,370, with a further 1,700 at risk - in all, roughly one in every six UK steel workers.

Labour MPs urged the Government to "stand up for Britain" against China and tackle visiting President Xi Jinping over Chinese steel firms flooding European markets with cheap steel.

Shadow trade minister Kevin Brennan said: "While the Chinese President is riding down The Mall in a gilded stagecoach, British [steel] workers are being laid off."

Speaking to Sky News earlier, Tata exec, Bimlendra Jha called into question the existence of the entire UK manufacturing sector: "there's a much larger ship to be saved and it’s not about Tata steel alone, it’s not about steel industry alone, it’s about manufacturing in Britain."

Responding to an urgent question in the House of Commons, Business Secretary Sajid Javid told steelworkers: "We will not abandon you now in your greatest time of need."

He said a taskforce had been set up, jobs fairs organised for workers affected by the layoffs and funding provided for retraining but he said the Government could not change the price of steel.

Mr Javid went on to say that he would be meeting EU commissioners next week to discuss the alleged dumping of cheap steel into the UK market.

Tata says the cuts are partly due to a "flood" of cheap imports, especially from China, as well as a strong pound and high electricity prices.

It said it had looked at "all other options" before cuts, while unions and manufacturers have said the Government needs to ensure the industry's survival.

The job losses will have a significant impact on George Osborne's vision of a Northern Powerhouse.

Manufacturers' organisation UK Steel said: "If we are to stem this tide then the Business Secretary must now deliver as a matter of urgency the commitments he made at last week's summit, on energy costs, Business Rates costs and tackling unfair trade."

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond told Sky News the issue would be on the agenda during David Cameron's talks with Mr Xi.

He said: "There's a global over-capacity in the steel industry and that's caused prices to fall very precipitately over the last 12 months or so, and that’s causing a problem around the world.

"The EU has imposed tariffs on Chinese steel to ensure that the price of Chinese steel reaching consumers here is fair, but there is a problem in this industry."

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is also expected to raise the issue with Mr Xi in a meeting later on Tuesday.

Paul McBean, the Community union spokesman at the Scunthorpe plant, said: "The Prime Minister needs to show that he wants a steel industry in the UK."

Former shadow business secretary Chuka Umunna tweeted that the Government's handling of the steel industry crisis was "disgraceful".

Due to overcapacity in the Chinese market the price of steel has fallen by 40% from around £318 a ton to under £191 in the past year, meaning that domestic UK firms are no longer able to compete.

These lower prices - twinned with a rebound in economic activity in the UK - have pushed up demand for Chinese steel.

On Monday, China announced its lowest nominal growth rate since 1999 , which helped to push Shanghai steel futures to an all-time low - suggesting that the recent price falls show little signs of reversing.