Closure Of St Helens Coates Viyella Factory

EDM number 753 in 1995-96, proposed by John Evans on 18/04/1996.

That this House condemns the precipitate decision of Coates Viyella to close their St Helens factory with the loss of 386 jobs without any consultation with the workforce or their representatives; notes with anger and dismay that the St Helens factory's production of shirts for Marks and Spencer will be transferred to Coates Viyella low wage factories in Mauritius and Morocco; further notes that this factory, where wages are between ú150-ú160 per week has such a long history of good industrial relations that in 1995 the workforce won for the company an Investing in People award; and therefore calls upon Coates Viyella to honour the assurance they gave to the workforce, St Helens Council and the honourable Members for St Helens North and St Helens South, when they took over Tootals, that the factory and its workforce had a long term future.

This motion has been signed by a total of 35 MPs.