Where was protest on Babcock closure?

Fear Editor Last Thursday was an upsetting day for the many employees and their families who have experienced a redundancy as a result of Babcock closing their DSG operation in Forthside.

In a bitter irony, this was done on the same day as heads of terms for the Stirling and Clackmannanshire City Region Deal was signed just along the road at the Engine Shed.

The service employed 56 people. These were highly skilled jobs, and almost 50 of them have now been made redundant.

Yes, this was a decision made by Babcock International – a private company looking to increase profits – but it came as the result of decisions made by the Tory Government to ‘decommission’ MOD Forthside.

In a press release, dated September 7, 2017, Stirling’s Tory MP Stephen Kerr boasted that he was “saving our jobs at Forthside”.

So much for the influence of Scottish Tory MPs at Westminster when defence ministers are not even willing to look again at their closure decisions, even when professional defence-related jobs are being lost in Scotland.

Or could it be that Mr Kerr was more comfortable blaming Babcock, and not the decisions of his party in Government?

The Stirling area is being stripped of its historical ties to the military, and our Tory MP is either incompetent or is unwilling to stand up to his own party to stop it.

People across the Stirling constituency will be looking at what has happened here and will no doubt make their judgement on this MP at the ballot box .

Councillor Alison Laurie Scottish National Party Stirling East