Coca-Cola to close Milton Keynes and Northampton sites

Coca-Cola said its priority is to support workers at both sites

Soft drinks giant Coca-Cola has confirmed it is moving forward with plans to close two UK sites, risking almost 300 jobs.

The US firm is to close its plant in Milton Keynes, which employs 220 people, and a distribution centre in Northampton, shedding 54 jobs.

It said it has consulted workers for the past two months and the closures would provide greater efficiency.

But Unite said there was no "convincing business case" made for the move.

The union's regional officer Sally Mortimer said she wanted Coca-Cola to have an "urgent rethink and not to jettison the hard-working workforces at these two sites".

A Coca-Cola European Partners spokesman said they "want to stress" the move was not a reflection on employees at the sites.

'Maximum support' to workers

The company said it would offer "training and development opportunities" for affected employees and that 121 new roles will be created elsewhere.

Production and warehousing will be transferred to other sites in Great Britain, it said.

Coca-Cola employs 4,000 people in Great Britain and has six manufacturing centres - a figure which includes Milton Keynes.

It employs 450 people at its largest plant, in Wakefield.

The Milton Keynes site, which was established in 1976, has nine manufacturing lines and produces 60 million cases of soft drinks a year.

Meanwhile, the Northampton distribution centre opened in 1993 and is operational 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

Ms Mortimer, from Unite, added: "We will be exploring with the company the redeployment opportunities that it has offered today, so as many workers as possible find new jobs within Coca-Cola.

"As a union, we will be giving our members maximum support during this very difficult time for them."