Madeleine Moon

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Ford engine plant in Bridgend is set to close in the fall of 2020, with the loss of 1,700 jobs.

Union officials were the plans at a meeting with Ford bosses, which include the range of shifts told.

workers were sent home after he received a letter that said, You lose your job, in phases, of 25 of September of next year.

Ford was accused of "changing customer demand and the cost of" decommissioning plans and denied Brexit a factor.

In a statement, Ford of Europe President Stuart Rowley said, the creation of a sustainable business requires The Company to "difficult" decisions, including the need for its Motor manufacturing base suitable for the vehicles that it produces in The Future .

"We are committed to the UK. However, changing demand and cost disadvantages, plus a absence of additional engine models for Bridgend to the front of the system to go is not economically viable in the coming years. "

Later, he said the decision was nothing to do with Brexit although he noted that the plans of The Company would be "very important for The Employees , their families and the community in South Wales ".

Mr Rowley has confirmed The Company will be £11m pay in the granting of incentives by the Welsh Government .

economy Minister, Ken Skates , said he was "absolutely furious" at Ford ' s decision, "the back Bridgend".

"We pumped a Huge amount of money in this facility, and we expect more from Ford. "

He said he was working with the chemical Company Ineos, and the other, the wish to come to this area".

He added The Site is "a priority" for any foreign investment.

the workers in the plant said they were destroyed on the ground.

"I expect my job to lose," says Tony Phillips , the add at the plant for 31 years, that they are "good, well-paid jobs".

colleague Mark Lendrum, said: "South Wales is like a Ghost Town . "

Leader of Bridgend Council, Huw David, said it is "A Family in Bridgend, which is not affected", and it is a "fantastic staff" from Newport to Llanelli.

"We don't know how we are going to recover from this.

"Both governments want to work here. We, as The Council will help people to find other," he said.

Graham Rees is one of the 1,700 workers at the Bridgend factory 'near the end of Graham Rees has worked at Ford in Bridgend for 35 years'.

"You can see the work come and go, when a Motor dies there is a replacement, but This Time , what do You do?

"It doesn't matter what You build, if people want to buy it, it is at the end of his life, full stop," he said.

"You get a sense, Yes, the end is near, but no one wants to admit that, so that You can prepare and get on with it.

"is There no light at the end of The Tunnel , You just have to face The Truth . "

closure news comes just months after Ford said it was with a 370 in a first phase.

investment in a new Petrol Engine , called the dragon, was driven back, while the production of the Motors for Jaguar and Land Rover is due at the end of this year.

a few days ago it was announced that.

GMB regional organiser Jeff Beck said: "We are extremely shocked by today's announcement. It is a real hammer blow for the Welsh economy and the community in Bridgend. "

He said The Union would continue to work with Ford, other unions and the Welsh Government "to find a solution to the Problem and mitigate the effects of this devastating message".

Unite union General Secretary Len Mccluskey Ford said had treated their British workers "guts".

"The fact remains that it is cheaper, easier and quicker to sack our people as those who swear in of our competitors," he said, to "against this closure, with all our power".

How Ford came to Bridgend Ford chose to Bridgend for its new engine plant in the summer of 1977, in accordance with the competition from elsewhere in Europe, especially from Ireland.

The Company needed an engine for the new Model , code-name " Erika - the Escort is the next generation of Ford.

It was to be built in Halewood on Merseyside and in the case of Saarlouis, in Germany, from 1980.

The Promise was for 2,500 jobs, but by the time it opened, in may 1980, Ford had decided to just 1,400 workers. There, 22,000 people were applying for the roles.

More Than a decade were raised when the decision was made to not from Ford of England and Ford of Europe, the different designs of the cars in the comparison with the United States and the rest of The World .

The Mark III Ford Escort - it was almost called the Ford-Erika to its development name is Electrical move Welsh Secretary Alun Cairns said he knew it was a "very worrying and uncertain time for the Ford workers, their families in Bridgend and the surrounding municipalities".

"The British Government , in close cooperation with Ford, the unions and the Welsh Government to ensure that these highly valued employees in new qualified employment. "

Earlier, Mr Cairns BBC Wales, said he was in contact with Ken Skates on the exploration of the production of electric vehicles as a means of protecting jobs in the Bridgend area.

Mr Cairns said the UK Government and the Welsh Government "already have with potential investors", but "there is obviously a lot more work".

He added that "the Brexit issue stand up", part of the Ford decision.

But said Bridgend Labour MP Madeleine Moon , You think it was "very clear about Brexit".

"The knock-on effect on the South Wales economy is Huge - there are the 12,000 related jobs.

"The card has just been erased," She Said .

Mr Skates said the Welsh Government would be a "quick reaction task force to support the workers".

has been invested Since 1978, over £140m of the taxpayers ' money, in the plant, Mr Skates said.

This was "money well spent", because the plant had "back - £3bn pumped" in the Bridgend economy in The Last 10 years alone, Mr Skates said.

" What we have repeatedly said, Ford has, over the past months and years, that Wales is ready, it is perfectly positioned to help companies. "

Prime Minister Mark Drakeford said the news was "incredibly sad", and promised would do the Welsh Government , "everything in its power" to support the people affected and to "work with all partners, opportunities for The Future of the plant".

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said closure would be "one of The Most bitter blows" on the Welsh economy for More Than 30 years.

"The implications of this in terms of the supply chain in terms of job losses is very, very serious, in fact," he added.

Getty Ford Bridgend

numbers

1,700 workers

£3. 3bnvalue to the Welsh economy over 10 years

£140mWelsh state support

£45,000 average annual salary

source: Welsh Government /unit time line to closure2008: Ford announcing it to operate as a single global Company - which means its Bridgend had plans engine, in competition with The Company 's other factories in the whole world, not only in Europe,

2015: Bridgend investments for the dragon-gasoline-engine-project-secures - with 250,000 engines a year, although it has indicated a capacity for 750,000 a year,

2016: The planned dragon-investments reduced to £121m, and The Number of modules is cut in half to 125,000

2017: Ford projects a reduction of 1,160 employees up to the year 2021 and confirmed

2018: The Employees make Jaguar engines face a five-day shutdown as Ford Europe head warns of a

Jan 2019: Ford plans to cut 370 jobs in The First phase of redundancies, a total of 990 up to 2021. The Dragon Project was planned to employ over 500

June 2019: Ford announces plans to close the plant in September of 2020, citing three Reasons for the phasing-out of a machine Model , the end of Jaguar Land Rover contract and a decline in the demand for the new 3-cylinder engine

What is happening in the Auto Industry ? Different car companies in the UK with factories, including Honda, Jaguar Land Rover and Nissan have announced significant cuts. This is accused to a

The Car Industry 's problems were, in part, "because trade is The Future uncertain, with Brexit", as a consultant Anna-Marie Baisden.

But The Head of car research for the Fitch solutions added that there is also a "departure from what is done in the moment, in terms of diesel passenger cars".

Karel Williams , an automotive expert from the Manchester Business School, said the closure is "Collateral Damage " of other "great development", as the push towards electric motors.

He also said it marked the boundaries of the Welsh Government "inward-investment strategy".

analysis by James Williams BBC Wales Brexit correspondentIt is the Brexit is the equivalent of a Rorschach Test - You interpret the inkblot or decision-making in different ways.

Ford announced in December that it was restructuring its operations across Europe.

manufacturing, car industry, ford bridgend closure, bridgend, wales economy, ford, wales business

Source of news: bbc.com