zip106

So, that's nearly it.

The Guberment have awarded the Thameslink contract to the Germans which will (I have no doubt about this) see Bombardier close the Derby site within 2 years.

So Siemens will create 'upto' 2000 jobs and Bombardier will shed over 3000 direct employees plus the many thousands of smaller supply companies.
And that's good for the UK taxpayer?

I didn't think it could get any worse than under Liebour, but this lot are just as bad.

I know first hand how Bombardier have invested in the Uk for the last 10 years, only recently taking on many young apprenticeships.

Politicians. Utter *******.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...shire-13792020

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

And this surprises you because..........?

mamoon2

For fu cks sake Cameron! Put your foot down before we have nothing left.

British contracts should never be awarded to a foreign country.

mamoon2

Again another reason why we should pull out of the EU!

Vote UKIP and we may see some change

zip106

Doesn't really surprise me, just disappoints me.

All the rhetoric of building the economy on manufacturing, a foreign company investing billions in OUR country only to get shafted, the young apprentices who up until today had a good future being trained by a great company.

It's just all ****ed up, isn't it?
Hardly going to encourage foreign companies investing in the UK Plc.

legb4rsk

As always.................follow the money!!!!!!!!
I wonder who will end up as an 'adviser' to the board of Siemens?

They are in it for what they can get out of it.Never, EVER make the mistake of thinking they are there for your benefit.

Luminous

iTrader: (3)

It is not too much of a surprise, but it is a disappointment. Unless the UK company was taking the ****, then the contract should have stayed in house!!

DYK

I have been voting UKIP,forget lab and con people keep voting the same 2 every time and expect change only to be shafted.

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

The Germans have sold £1 Billion worth of hover trains to China that travel at 400 + kph without wheels!

Bit better than your average diesel/electric UK version.

zip106

True.
Bit of a gimmick system though.

stilover

What's the difference between awarding a German owned company a Train contract and not a Dutch owned company (Think they're dutch) a Train contract?

Both are foreign owned, and both employ uk workers.

Oh, and Train industry in the UK is hardly dead. Hitachi are going to open up a brand new factory in Newton Aycliffe (where I work) employing many people in the local area. Plus, all the local companies that will benefit Hitachi being there.

But they're Japanese owned. Maybe we should have told them to sling their hooks.

EDIT
Train building in the North East is coming home. Back where it all started.

zip106

Canadian actually.

There will be as many as 300 (wow) new jobs created in Tyneside as opposed to over 3000 jobs lost plus about 10000 in the supply chain lost.

The new trains will be built in Germany and shipped to the UK.
Don't get your hopes up.

Hitachi wil create 'upto' 500 jobs between now and 2015.
That'll help, eh?

The fact is, this Canadian company already have the manufacturing infrastructure and plant right here in the UK already so would actually build them here.
You think Siemens are going to build a new plant here?
You are very much deluded if you do.


I think you ought to read ALL the link I posted.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Siemens owns the majority of UK industry anyway!

They just wade in, take over, asset strip and move operations elsewhere. Sometimes in the UK, sometimes overseas

On the basis that Seimens have more UK operations in other sectors than the other bunch, it maybe wise to stay bum buddies with Siemens in the interests of keeping some of its other operations in the UK.

zip106

I remember them taking over an electronics company in Nottingham some years ago (Plessey, I think).

Did exactly what you said and buggered off leaving many unemployed.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Yup; They are currently doing it to SIT (Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery) in Lincoln; Used to be Alstom & Ruston Gas Turbines. But they are slowely dismantling and restructuring it bit by bit moving operations elsewhere.

My mate maybe facing the axe in the future; The insult being that if this does indeed carry on through, he has to train up junior level staff to take over his job!

zip106

Would that be the Alstom (used to be Alsthom, French) that do the track maintenance?
Wife used to work for them out of the Broad St, Brum offices.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Used to be. It used to be Ruston, then GEC then Alstom and GEC merged together at some point. Then it was sold to Siemens when Alstom went pear shaped.

Shadow of its former self; They were going to move packaging operations abroad, but have done a U-turn for a claimed increase in orders. My cynical mind thinks that maybe someone somewhere gave them a golden handshake to stay put.

zip106

I think Siemens only bought the turbines part of Alstom.

Alstom is listed on the stock market in its own right.

ALi-B

iTrader: (1)

Yes, just the Lincoln based turbine ops were sold off.

The diesel engine part of Ruston (Paxman) eventually ended up being part of MAN

The Trooper 1815

iTrader: (31)

Yep. A £1 billion gimmick to the German economy, well done British innovation, foreign investment (not aid) and forward thinking.

China bought more Audi A6 cars last year then the whole total of Audi's bought in Germany .

zip106

I see your point, but it doesn't seem to be used anywhere else?
Why is that - cost?

I shouldn't read too much into how much China are investing - it won't last long!

Anyway, if Bombardier pull out of the UK it won't affect the company - they'll just open operations up in Romania.
If they had been given that contract it would have increased the workforce by another 50% at least and kept Derby open for another 10 years.

As much as I like our green and pleasant land, we're not too hot at keeping major employers sweet and helping our own cause!

tony de wonderful

I think Hornby still make trains?

zip106

Yes, in China.
Probably.

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

In China, yes, only distributed from Margate now.

Leslie

The original plan for a federated Eu was that the UK would be the financial centre, France would do all the farming, and Germany would be responsible for engineering interests.

Not publicised at the time when Heath was doing the manouevering in this country with respect to setting up the EEC initially so that it would eventually turn into a political federation. He deliberately kept all that to himself at the tiime of the referendum over joining the EEC.

Les