Redundancies at Cammell Laird shipyards.

That this House recognises that the Cammell Laird shipyards have for many decades played a central role in the local economy of Birkenhead; notes that the shipyards currently employ approximately seven-hundred people from across the town and the wider region; further notes that approximately five-hundred young people have undertaken apprenticeships at the yards in the last decade, including fifty-one starting in the last year alone; regrets the recent announcement of one hundred and seventy-eight redundancies at the site and extends its support to the workers who have been affected the announcement; believes that Cammell Laird management must work closely with representatives of recognised trade unions with the intention of avoiding and minimising job losses; calls upon the management of Cammell Laird to definitively rule out compulsory redundancies; and urges the Government to act swiftly in ensuring that the contract for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s new Fleet Solid Support Ships and other defence projects are awarded to British shipyards, including Cammell Laird, as a means of saving hundreds of jobs in British shipbuilding and thousands more in the wider supply chain.