Unions demand action to prevent ‘corporate decapitation’ of Grangemouth

Trade unions person demanded enactment from Westminster and Holyrood to forestall the “industrial vandalism” and “corporate decapitation” of Grangemouth.

Scotland’s past remaining lipid refinery is slated for closure adjacent year, with 400 jobs astatine hazard of being lost. It volition beryllium turned into a substance import terminal that volition employment astir 100 people.

Workers and national members marched on the Royal Mile successful Edinburgh down to Holyrood for a rally connected Thursday calling for the tract to beryllium saved.

Unite the Union wide caput Sharon Graham warned the UK and Scottish governments astir the menace of deindustrialisation.

She said the national would not judge the instauration of “another working-class wasteland”.

She said Unite had a program to alteration the tract into a greenish aviation substance hub, thing that has been done successful different countries.

John Swinney, who met Ms Graham earlier the protest, is considering the proposals, his authoritative spokesperson said.

Speaking extracurricular the Scottish Parliament, she said politicians were not doing capable to prevention each the jobs astatine hazard successful Falkirk.

She said: “Let’s beryllium very, precise wide and marque nary mistake, what is happening astatine Grangemouth is an enactment of concern vandalism, a grotesque spectacle of firm decapitation, wherever a satellite superpower and a British billionaire who buys a shot nine arsenic a hobby is allowed to propulsion these workers connected the scrapheap.”

Petroineos is simply a associated task betwixt PetroChina and Ineos, a chemic conglomerate owned by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, a important number shareholder of Manchester United.

Petroineos has said it cannot proceed supporting Grangemouth, which it said is losing up to £385,000 a time and is older and smaller than different refineries crossed the world.

Ms Graham described the closure of the works arsenic “highway robbery” and said governmental leaders were not doing capable to halt it.

She added: “Where are the politicians? Until this week astir of them person been missing successful action.

“Why person they fto it spell truthful far? It’s an abdication of their responsibility. So let’s accidental precise large and wide present contiguous to the SNP, to Scottish Labour – combat for Scotland.”

Speaking to the PA quality bureau aft her speech, she criticised Scottish Secretary Ian Murray, who antecedently told PA that the UK Government would not see buying the lipid refinery.

“I deliberation what Ian Murray said astir Grangemouth and accepting closure was abhorrent, rather frankly,” she said.

“I deliberation what helium said was wholly and utterly wrong.

“How tin radical accidental those things wherever they haven’t adjacent bothered to look astatine an autarkic reappraisal to spot if this tract tin beryllium saved?”

The Scottish and UK governments person committed £1.5 cardinal to Project Willow, a survey that volition look astatine options for the semipermanent aboriginal of the site.

But Petroineos has said its findings would not get successful clip for jobs to beryllium saved.

Both governments person besides committed £100 cardinal of concern for a section maturation woody to enactment jobs successful the area.

Graeme Allan, a 30-year-old utilities power country relation astatine Grangemouth, said the closure of the tract would beryllium “detrimental” to him, his household and the wider community.

He told PA: “Grangemouth already has 2 of the astir impoverished areas successful Scotland. This volition conscionable propulsion the remainder of it into further destitution.

“It volition beryllium perfectly diabolical.”

Asked whether helium agreed with ministers that they are doing each they tin to prevention the site, helium said: “We are astir being lied to. We are present contiguous due to the fact that we are not seeing immoderate enactment connected this and everyone tin spot done what they are saying.

“And I’d similar to accidental to John Swinney, wherever are the promises to assistance with the transition? We are lasting unsocial and that’s wherefore we are present today.”

The Scottish Government, the UK Government and Petroineos person been approached for comment.