Alexander Dennis closure risks leaving communities 'hollowed out' as union calls for public ownership
A trade union has called for a Scots bus manufacturer to be nationalised if a rescue deal cannot be agreed to prevent 400 job losses.
Alexander Dennis Ltd (ADL) announced last week plans to shutter its two factories in Camelon and Larbert and centralise its operations in Yorkshire.
The move would bring an end to more than 100 years of bus building in the Falkirk district and comes just weeks after the closure of the oil refinery in nearby Grangemouth.
The GMB trade union has today warned that repeated job losses across Scotland's manufacturing sector risks leaving communities "hollowed out".
Louise Gilmour, the union's Scottish secretary, branded the threatened closure "absurd" given the demand for more environmentally friendly vehicles.
John Swinney last week blamed strict procurement rules on state subsidy on why the Scottish Government was not able to place more orders with the Falkirk-based firm.
ADL recently completed work on more than 160 new buses for the Greater Manchester combined authority, which brought bus services back under public control.
But buses remain privatised across Scotland - meaning companies can choose to order cheaper imports from China instead of ordering from the UK.
In a letter to Swinney and Ian Murray, the Scottish Secretary, Gilmour warned communities were being "hammered".
She said: "It is absurd that a country with a bus network as extensive as Scotland's is not able to sustain its only bus manufacturer.
"In the long term, procurement rules must be reviewed placing a clear and considerable preference on domestic manufacturing. An industrial strategy which mandates domestic manufacturing content is also needed.
"Both governments have a role in delivering this. The public ownership of Scotland's bus networks to place this emphasis in procurement must now be fast tracked.
"However, the short-term future of the sites must be secured urgently. Promises of leaving no stone unturned have been heard by our members before.
"Our members do not need warm words. They need a strategy with a backbone. If required, the public ownership of the site must be an option."
The union chief also said the GMB had written to ADL last month with an offer to work together to secure the Scottish sites, which was rejected by the firm.
She added: "The planned closure of these sites are in addition to job losses at Tarmac in East Lothian and the closure of Aggregate Industries in North Lanarkshire as both companies seek to move operations to England.
"It also follows the closure of Grangemouth. So not only is Scotland's manufacturing base being hollowed out, these losses are hammering communities in the Falkirk area.
"Our members have seen contract after contract for buses go overseas. Our buses are built in China whilst our ferries are built in Poland. They have seen more orders from Manchester local authorities than they have from Scotland.
"It is not party political to point this out – it is a fact and a reflection of the clear failures to heed warnings from trade unions. It has only been a few months since Scottish jobs were lost from Alexander Dennis. This should have been foreseen and prevented."
The Record asked the Scottish and UK Governments for comment.
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