South Scotland MSP Colin Smyth is urging Scottish and UK Government agencies to support Pinneys workers to help secure new jobs being created at Cavaghan and Gray in Carlisle.

Owners of the Carlisle plant-2Sisters-have announced they will be creating 200 jobs at the site to carry out new contracts with Marks and Spencer. 

The news comes as workers at Pinneys in Annan factory are leaving their jobs ahead of its shutdown in the next few weeks- as a result of owners Young’s Seafood not continuing with their Marks and Spencer contracts.

Commenting on the news Colin Smyth said, “The so-called Action Group set up to find a future for Pinneys of Annan has been a huge damp squib, summed up by the fact they don’t even communicate with the local community or local politicians anymore. Both the Scottish and UK Government’s promised to pull out all the stops to find a buyer for Pinneys and jobs for the workforce but so far have achieved very little.

The big challenge workers at Pinneys face is the fact that there aren’t hundreds of vacancies in the Dumfriesshire area for those losing employment at the site, so many people will look to Cumbria for work. It’s somewhat perverse that Pinneys is closing because Young’s Seafood have pulled out of contracts with M&S at a time 2Sisters have secured contracts with M&S. But it means the Pinneys workforce have the skills and experience to carry out that work at 2Sisters and although expansion at the Cumbrian site will take time, I hope that both UK and Scottish Government agencies support any Pinneys workers to secure posts in Carlisle. 2Sisters attended the recent job summit in Annan, so it’s clear they are recruiting now and hopefully that will help at least some of the Pinneys workers facing such an uncertain future”