The Transport and General Workers Union (T&G) said that TVR’s decision to lay off 158 workers from its Blackpool plant, three weeks after it announced it would cease production there, has caused anger and confusion.

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The UK sports car maker confirmed in a statement that the company has no plans to re-start production at the Blackpool factory


T&G regional industrial organiser Andy Robertson said that personal undertakings by TVR owner Nikolai Smolenski to the union had been “effectively ripped up”.


The union, together with local authorities, had been exploring possible alternatives to the company leaving Blackpool before fully accepting closure.


Robertson said: “We understand the difficulties and sensitivities of the situation at TVR but we also understand it when we are told there will be no lay-offs. Today’s announcement directly contradicts promises by to the T&G by Smolenski that while talks continued to try to save the Blackpool plant no one would face being sent home. There is a lot of anger just now amongst those affected.”

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TVR said that formal consultation on redundancy is continuing with staff and the T&G Workers union and talks have been held with Blackpool Council and the Northwest Regional Development Agency, while Robertson said that the T&G had been led to believe that laid-off employers would not receive payment.


TVR managing director David Oxley said: “We are continuing to talk to a number of people about plans they are putting forward for the Bristol Avenue factory, but in the meantime we need to make sure we are ready to move production to the new facility as quickly and as efficiently as possible. 


“We therefore took the decision to stop production at the optimum point for training and handover, which unfortunately means that we have no further work for production staff here.


”We regret we have had to take this decision, but we must remain focused on the future of the company and ready to implement our outsourcing plans quickly.”


TVR added that agreements are being finalised for the 2007 run of Tuscan, Tuscan Convertible and Sagaris to be produced in Europe, with powertrains built in the UK.