Bombardier decision slammed

Rail unions at TUC Congress last month called for the government to reverse its decision to award a £1.6 billion order for train carriages to Germany’s Siemens over Derby-based bidder Bombardier.

Labour party leader Ed Miliband added his voice to the criticism, telling delegates that the government should work in partnership with business so that innovative British companies can succeed. “And that includes companies like Bombardier being cruelly sold down the river by this government,” he added.

Meanwhile, the TUC had called for the decision not to award the Thameslink contract to Bombardier to be referred to the Office of Rail Regulation and the Competition Commission over concerns that the contract potentially takes away fair competition and leaves the market dominated by a couple of providers.

Further damning evidence against the government’s decision came in a recent survey by the Unite union revealing the extent of the job losses across Bombardier’s UK supply chain that come on top of the 1,400 jobs lost at Bombardier itself. The survey of 125 companies that supply Siemens and/or Bombardier, represents a cross-section of UK businesses involved in supplying services, components and parts to the global train manufacturing industry.

Only 24% of UK suppliers currently supply Siemens, indicating the companies are poorly positioned to provide Siemens with future train manufacture.

And of the total sample, almost a third (32%) believed the government’s decision would have a substantial negative impact on sales.