Originally published @ 6:28 pm, Tue 5th Jul 2011
Canvassing in Sawley, Long Eaton, near both Nottingham and Derby, it didn't take long for a voter to protest about the loss of work and jobs at the railway engineering plant in Derby, run by Bombardier.
And it's clear that a narrow interest of value for money is being taken by the governemnt when other EU countires use the rules throughly to imrove the chances of local jobs for local people.
Unite are running an on-line petition and I hope you can take the opportunity to pass on its address -
The government are showing a lack of ambition for local manufacturing industry, at a time when it's talking up the need to re-balance the economy in favour of manufacuring.
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On BBC East Midlands Today, tonight, the Tory Derby City leader has bewailed the response of David Cameron to the crisis in rail manufacturing in Derby. He said he'd sent 3 letters and only got 2 acknowledgements; he'd expected more, especially since Cameron and Nick Clegg had come to Derby a few months back to pump it up.
So Cameron doesn't want to act and the Tory City leader has no influence over his own PM. Time to change the party running Derby.
Meanwhile, the BBC challenged Bombardier with some possible reasons as to why they'd lost the latest significant bid. He protested that these challnges had detail that he and his colleagues had not been informed of by the DfT when the company had its one hour formal feedback. He emphatically said DfT did not share any significant information. He also said this was the first time Bombardier had lost to Siemens (although he may have qualified that by saying in a bid fior British rolling stock).
Meanwhile, Margaret Beckett, Derby South MP, testified to Bombardier being a good firm and a good employer, and that such treatment may lead to them giving up on the UK.
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My letter to party members follows -
Dear colleagues,
The loss of 1,500 train manufacturing jobs in Derby is a blow to the local economy and represents a severe threat to Britain’s last railway technology cluster.
Unite the union is running an on-line petition and I hope you can take a minute to sign it.
There is also a demonstration to be held on the 23rd.
The Gov’t have said they want to re-balance the economy in favour of manufacturing but today’s performance on TV and radio is simply saying it’s the rules and ‘what can we do’? A bit of ambition and some smart thinking is needed.
A by-election in Sawley, Long Eaton may shake up their complacency, where Labour could come from a long way behind to win.
So please, 1. Sign the petition, 2. Help out in Sawley (phone 07703 716 812), 3. Join the rally.
Best wishes,
Michael Edwards,
Member, Transport Salaried Staffs Association,
Labour Parliamentary Candidate, South Derbyshire, 2010.
More info at –
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