Unite Scotland has said an XPO Logistics distribution site at Eurocentral and transfer the work to Heywood in England with the potential loss of around 200 jobs.

The warehouse and distribution site at Mossend provides distribution services for Argos and Sainsbury's "if the proposal goes ahead there would be no workers left at the site by January 7, 2021", the union said. 

XPO Logistics intend to transfer volumes of work from its Eurocentral site to England starting in September.

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Kenny Jordan, Unite regional officer, said: “The news from XPO Logistics is a bitter blow to the workforce of around 200.

"The timescales and timing of this announcement comes as a shock because the Mossend site based at Eurocentral has been outperforming other distribution sites for some time now.

"Unite will exhaust every avenue to retain these jobs because there is no logical business reason for this decision and our members will have every support possible from their trade union.”  

XPO Logistics said the decision was made by its customer, and added in a statement: “As our customer works to bring the Sainsbury’s and Argos businesses closer together, we will assist them on their review of operations at Mossend.

"We will be providing our colleagues with ongoing support during this period of change.”

The Scottish Government has unveiled a £38 million package of support for new firms.

Economy Secretary Fiona Hyslop announced the plans at the daily coronavirus briefing, saying they include £3 million of grants of up to £50,000 for start-ups deemed to have the most potential for growth.

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She also announced £25 million for a new Early Stage Growth Fund which involves companies competing for up to £300,000 in grants and investment, with applications opening on July 20.

Ms Hyslop said panels will be formed to choose the recipients of the funding, adding: "It will be a combination of identifying potential but also inviting those companies in those areas.

"I think that competitive edge will also make sure that challenge that we're presenting will provide best opportunities for growth and jobs in these sectors."

A total of £10 million will also be given to Scottish Enterprise to support funds from the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB), which are aimed at topping up private sector investment in businesses to as much as 50%.

Ms Hyslop also told the briefing that the funding, which will be allocated by Scottish Enterprise and its private sector partners, was allocated as part of a £230 million stimulus package from the Scottish Government last month.

She said: "The package is another example of how we're tailoring our support to best suit Scotland's economic needs with schemes that are unique to Scotland."

Metro Bank has appointed a banking veteran as chief risk officer.

Richard Lees will join the company early next year, reporting to chief executive Daniel Frumkin.

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A veteran of the Co-operative Bank, Lloyds and HBOS, Mr Lees said: "Metro Bank has proven itself as a challenger bank committed to bringing something different to banking and really delivering for its customers and communities.

"I'm really looking forward to joining the team."

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