Unions urge aid for Luton van staff

Britain’s car manufacturers and its unions 'are the solution' , says Lord Mandelson

Business Secretary Lord Mandelson will be urged to help save thousands of jobs when he visits one of the UK's last remaining van factories.

The minister will tour Vauxhall's Luton plant and meet union officials, local MPs and company managers as negotiations continue with potential buyers of its parent company.

Canadian car parts manufacturer Magna, backed by Russia's state-owned Sberbank, was selected last month as the preferred bidder for GM Europe, which includes Vauxhall in the UK and Opel in Germany, but other companies are believed to have shown an interest.

China's Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation (BAIC) is reportedly putting together proposals, and its representatives are expected to meet Lord Mandelson in the coming weeks.

Union officials said they wanted to impress on Lord Mandelson the "strong case" for supporting van production at Luton.

Len McCluskey, Unite's assistant general secretary, said it was vital that the uncertainty about the plant's future was ended.

"With workers at the Luton plant extremely worried for their futures they will be pleased that a government minister is coming to see for themselves the pride this workforce has in the product it makes make.

"Clearly we need to make progress on an investor in GM Europe so that we can safeguard this plant, but it has to be the right buyer with the right vision, and a pre-requisite of any sale must be that UK jobs are protected."

Rob Weir, a senior Unite shop steward at the Luton plant, added: "This plant is one of the most productive and efficient in Europe. We set the benchmark which other plants must follow and we are a brilliant advert for British manufacturing.

"What we want to hear from Lord Mandelson today is that the UK government is 100% behind us and 100% engaged in securing the Luton plant's future. If decisions are made on sound commercial and economic logic, then there should be no doubt that this plant will thrive and continue to be Britain's premier van builder."