Bounce back vow over Amazon's Rugeley closure plan

Amazon has run the warehouse in Rugeley, Staffordshire, for about 12 years but wants to close it and invest in a new one in Sutton Coldfield

A town will "bounce back" from the news Amazon plans to close a huge local warehouse, a council leader has vowed.

The online retail giant proposes to close its site at Towers Business Park in Rugeley, Staffordshire.

Staff will be offered jobs at a new £500m site in Sutton Coldfield which it plans to have up and running by October.

"We will bounce back and we owe it to our communities," Cannock Chase Council leader Tony Johnson said.

The news of the plans came as a shock to both the authority and residents in Rugeley, councillors heard at two meetings this week.

Amazon has operated the site for about 12 years and the move follows the closure of the town's indoor market this year and a decision by the current outdoor market operator not the renew their licence.

If a new tenant is not found for the warehouse in Rugeley, Cannock Chase Council could lose about £448,000 from its budget due to the reduction in business rate income.

There was "significant uncertainty" about Amazon's plans as the retailer stressed they were at an early stage, a report for the authority said.

'A shock and a blow'

The firm was the biggest employer in the area with about 1,000 people employed, it added.

Action was already being taken to support residents affected by the plan, Mr Johnson told fellow councillors.

"It came as a shock and a blow to the local community. But it has not knocked us down - we are a resilient bunch and will recover," he said.

A 45-day consultation has begun on the plans, Mr Johnson added.

A task force was set up by council officers in partnership with groups which included the National Careers Service and Cannock College, deputy leader Josh Newbury said.

"We are asking Amazon for details of roles that will be affected so we can match people with vacancies in the region," he added.