Fresh bid to save McVitie's biscuit factory from closure

Workers held a demonstration over the plans in May

A bid to secure the future of a closure-threatened McVitie's biscuit factory will be be made to the owners of the site.

Nearly 500 jobs are at risk at the factory in Tollcross, which opened almost 100 years ago in Glasgow's east end.

An action group will propose building a new factory on a nearby site.

Parent company Pladis plans to close the factory in late 2022 and move production elsewhere.

The Turkish-owned firm has blamed "excess capacity" at its UK sites and plans.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has vowed to do "everything we possibly can" to save the business in Glasgow.

The plan to build a new factory has been drawn up by a group of union chiefs, politicians and business people.

'Compelling proposal'

Glasgow City Council leader Susan Aitken said: "This proposal is compelling and would secure a future for Pladis in the city. I trust they will give it the consideration it deserves."

Economy Secretary Kate Forbes said: "The action group has together worked at pace to identify and explore options to secure the future of these crucial manufacturing jobs in Glasgow.

"I would hope and expect the senior management at Pladis to now study the proposals carefully, and to engage with the action group on them in a constructive and thorough manner."

Pladis started issuing redundancy notices last month.

In a statement, a spokesman for the firm said: "Our priority is the continued engagement with the employee representatives, and we remain open to considering any alternative proposals through the formal consultation process which is ongoing."

The factory is based in Tollcross, in the east end of Glasgow

Unite industrial officer Pat McIlvogue said: "We believe that the proposal put forward to build a new factory on a nearby site will produce efficiency savings and make this one of the most advanced biscuit manufacturing sites in the UK.

"Unite is asking that Pladis study and positively engage with us on this proposal because we believe that everyone can win from this, most importantly the hundreds of jobs at stake in the local community."

GMB Scotland organiser David Hume said: "We believe the proposal offers Pladis everything it needs to maintain manufacturing in the East End of Glasgow for the next generation, ensuring employment and opportunity for the local community that depends on it."

Pladis acquired McVitie's in 2014 after taking over United Biscuits, and is now reportedly the third-biggest biscuit maker in the world.

The same year it cut the then 680-strong workforce by nearly a quarter, unions said, but the factory remains a "major employer in an area with higher levels of social deprivation and unemployment".

McVitie's traces its roots to the original Scottish biscuit maker, McVitie & Price Ltd, which was established in 1830 in Edinburgh.